December 10, 2018
Jalasathis ensuring safe commutes for Kolkatans
The deployment of ‘jalasathis’ at transit points of inland waterways is ensuring safety and security of commuters. Commuters now feel confident in travelling in the vessels due to the presence of jalasathis at the transit points, say government officials.
It may be mentioned that the Trinamool Congress Government has taken all necessary measures to ensure the safety and security of people who travel across the Hooghly in vessels.
The government has developed jetties at the transit points following a standard operating procedure (SOP), to avoid any untoward incident. Besides upgrading the earmarked jetties, new ones were also constructed following the SOP that ensures proper illumination in the area, necessary infrastructure to prevent overloading of vessels, etc.
The SOP includes the deployment of well-trained persons at the jetties to ensure the SOPs are followed. These personnel are the jalasathis.
The jalasathis underwent necessary training before they were posted at the jetties. Besides ensuring that passenger load of vessels is maintained and no passenger gets onto the jetty before the scheduled time, the jalasathis have also been trained to initiate rescue work in case any untoward incident.
They have been commissioned a blue uniform so that they can be easily identified by commuters, who can approach them for any sort of help.
At night, the jalasathis ensure that the jetty areas remains properly illuminated so that commuters do not face problem in getting down from vessels. They also help elderly people as and when required. They also ensure that there is no rush to get onto the vessels, to prevent any accident.
Source: Millennium Post
