Koppal cops give roaming youngsters a coconut as a token of goodwill

Koppal/ Hubballi: The second week of the lockdown having started, police across the state are coming up with ever more novel methods to keep youngsters roaming without any cause chained to their respective homes. After cops made youngsters perform gruelling exercises, sweep streets and stations clean to varying results, Koppal police have decided to adopt a more generous and traditional approach.
Across India, in most ritual ceremonies, guests are handed a coconut as a farewell gift, and many auspicious events are begun with the breaking of the coconut, and it is this tropical crop that Koppal cops are using to drive their message through. Koppal cops are handing youngsters wearing masks, but venturing out on bikes for no reason a coconut, and asking them to return home, while those stepping outside without covering their faces in any manner are having coconuts broken in front of their vehicles by police.
Koppal deputy superintendent of police Venkatappa Nayak said that the cops shelled out money from their own pockets to purchase the coconuts. “Personally, I spent Rs 2,000 and bought 200 coconuts. These are being distributed to youngsters needless roaming the streets of Koppal town. We are requesting them to cooperate with cops by staying indoors,” Nayak told TOI.
The deputy SP, however, said that the cops were ensuring that those leaving homes for genuine reasons such as purchasing medicines and other essential commodities are not stopped. “But we have found that many people are venturing outside without cause, and our intention is to make them understand the gravity of the situation. When such youngsters return home with coconuts in their hands, the members of their families will understand the reason behind the cops’ gesture, and word will soon spread among the public. In the end, this will prevent many others from straying outside their homes,” Nayak added.
No mask, no fuel at Hubballi fuel station
Keen on instilling a sense of responsibility among commuters at a time when the Covid-19 infection is spreading rapidly across the country and state, the management of a fuel station has decided against servicing customers who arrive without masks. The owners are equally strict when it comes to enforcing social distancing at the station, refusing to sell fuel to customers not keeping a safe distance from others.
In addition to strict adherence to the norms of the lockdown, employees of the Mahaveer Petrol Pump in Hubballi have been distributing masks to those coming to the station with no protective equipment to cover their faces.
Ashpaq Kunnibhavi, manager of the fuel station in question, said that, while they were operating as they had done prior to the announcement of the lockdown, the management had been requested by cops to refuse petrol to those loitering around the city needlessly. “So, we started a campaign, which entailed, besides refusing sale of fuel to those not wearing masks, and travelling around the city without any valid reason, appealing to our customers to cooperate with the cops in enforcing the lockdown,” said Kunnibhavi.
Santosh Muttagi, the owner of the petrol pump, said that his employees had distributed masks to more than 500 people thus far. “The success of the lockdown will bode well for the city, state and country. We are also raising awareness among daily-wage labourers on the need for social distancing,” said Muttagi.
Sohan Patil, who visited the fuel station without a mask recently, is among those who was given one by the employees there. “I was attending on a patient at the Karnataka Institute of Medical Sciences, and when the staff at the station asked why I was venturing out, I told them as much. They requested me with folded hands not to roam the streets needlessly and gave me a mask,” Patil said.