Nothing to fear, police uncle is here: Delhi Police launches outdoor play areas for children
The first ever in India, the Kalkaji Police Station in Delhi has an outdoor play area, complete with swings, cutouts of animals, a colourful fence that resembles crayons
A trip to the police station can be one of the most nightmarish experiences in a child’s life. The grim, antiseptic infrastructure sends intimidating vibes, as the little one sits frozen on a chair for hours, staring at the dreary walls, even as stern-looking officials pace around the room.
The Kalkaji Police Station in Delhi is a far cry from this terrifying image. The first ever in India, it has an outdoor play area, complete with swings, cutouts of animals, a colourful fence that resembles crayons and an entry gate that says ‘Police Uncle’ with a caricature of a smiling cop. It has been set up as a part of Delhi Police’s ‘Police Uncle’ initiative that aims at presenting a friendly, approachable image of police in front of children.
The police station also has a child friendly room with facilities to entertain children. “Delhi Police may be one of the first police forces to have thoughtfully come with such an idea. We started off with the concept of child friendly room in police stations last year at the IGI Airport and soon extended it to other police stations. Kalka Ji will be the 32nd such police station, and the first to have an outdoor play area of this kind,” says Amulya Patnaik, Commissioner of Police, Delhi.
The commissioner believes that this will help create a friendly impression of police in the minds of children. “Traditionally, police stations are known to be places where criminals are handled but there are many occasions when they deal with situations that have nothing to do with crime. They provide certain kind of assistance to people. From an early stage, the children should have a feeling that police stations are a place where the atmosphere is positive and comforting. It is like any other place where one could go to get one’s grievances addressed. The policemen sitting there are like friends who are there to help everyone at any point of time,” says Patnaik.