With mercury levels soaring, traffic police personnel in Vellore, Ranipet, Tirupattur and Tiruvannamalai now get lemon juice and buttermilk twice a day, to beat the heat.
On Wednesday, Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), Vellore range that covers these four districts, M.S. Munusamy, accompanied by Superintendent of Police (Vellore), S. Rajesh Kannan, distributed buttermilk and lemon juice to traffic police personnel at key junctions in Vellore town.
A sachet containing 200 ml of juice or butter milk will be distributed to police personnel both in the morning and evening from March 1 onwards. “As per a government order, allowances are given for this distribution for up to 120 days depending on weather conditions. As dry weather began, we decided to start the initiative,” K.S. Balakrishnan, SP (Tirupattur), told The Hindu.
Traffic authorities were seen distributing buttermilk packets during the afternoon hours to personnel who were on traffic duty on roads and at traffic signals. They were given two packets of buttermilk, said to be very healthy. Glucose biscuits and water bottles are also being supplied to keep the personnel energised and maintain their water levels.
Of the total police strength of around 5,000 including women constables in these districts, around 600 traffic police personnel will benefit in these districts under the initiative. On an average, each traffic police personnel gets two hours in breaks for every four hours of duty.
On Wednesday, the maximum temperature was 35 degrees Celsius in these districts. Alongside buttermilk and lemon juice, traffic police personnel were also provided with jute-made hats in place of old woollen caps to beat the heat during summer. These hats help to avoid direct sunlight. Also, small pores in these hats provide better ventilation and air circulation. In Tiruvannamalai, K. Karthikeyan, SP, launched the drive whereas D. V. Kiran Shruthi, SP (Ranipet) inaugurated it in Ranipet.