Kolkata police will undertake an audit of private offices which are currently operating with 25 per cent of the work force in the city, to ensure that lockdown norms, including those of social distancing, are followed during office hours.

Confirming the move to conduct an audit that has been cleared by the commissioner of police, Mr Anuj Sharma, an officer at Lalbazar said that the city police would also focus on preventing the misuse of e-passes issued by the traffic department, among other things that wiill be brought under its purview.

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“The move to undertake audit of private offices operating with 25 per cent of workforce had been necessitated to ensure adherence to the rules of running such offices, in conjunction with maintenance of social distancing rules, any violation of which could invite strong action,” said an officer.

“We are planning to restrict the validity of e-passes to a week to ensure rotation in duty is followed in these offices,” said a sergeant.

Police officers had been advised by the city police chief, Mr Anuj Sharma to crack down on any dilution of containment norms on one hand and to keep an eye on any misuse of e-passes issued by traffic department to vehicle owners, which should be strictly dealt with, said a senior officer at city police traffic department.

Mr Sharma, who on Saturday on a visit to several police stations and traffic guards across Southeast, North and Central Kolkata told officers to continue their good work implementing complete lockdown in containment zones as well as tightening the noose on those violating the lockdown by either misusing e-passes or using fake e-passes.

Mr Sharma was also learnt to have been apprised of the problems faced by police officers while on duty. He also met officers of the Jorabagan traffic guard, which had been declared as a containment zone following reports of several officers having contracted the novel coronavirus.

An officer at Lalbazar said the move to undertake an audit was conceived since the private offices, which had been functioning with 25 per cent of workforce, are either in Central Kolkata or at EM Bypass, where there are several containment zones. “Our focus is to ensure that people of non-containment zones should not be in contact with the persons in containment zones. So that audit has been planned,” said the officer.