New Delhi: As India braces itself for another 19 days under lockdown, police across the country are adopting novel and innovative methods to spread awareness about the coronavirus pandemic.
From singing to accessorising their uniforms — the police is exploring multiple creative avenues to urge people to stay at home and effectively curb the spread of the virus.
Just before Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the extension of the lockdown to 3 May Tuesday, the Mumbai police shared ‘Lockdown Lessons’ — a series of two-liners that are a take on the poems by Rosesh Sarabhai, a character from the classic comedy show ‘Sarabhai vs Sarabhai’.
Shaving ke liye cream se better hai foam
Shaving ke liye cream se better hai foamDuring the lockdown, please stay at home#LockdownLessons #TakingOnCorona pic.twitter.com/IpNwBzOzQR
— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) April 14, 2020
Also read: Bringing friend home in suitcase to ‘Corona cakes’: Quirky ways Indians dealing with lockdown
Coronavirus awareness through songs
It’s not just humour that the police are using. Several of them are also singing modified songs and even original compositions to spread awareness.
A police officer from Kolkata interspersed a popular song from Bengali filmmaker Satyajit Ray’s iconic 1969 movie ‘Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne’ with public service messages on coronavirus last week.
Kolkata Police officer singing from Satyajit Ray’s Goopy Gayen — interspersed with Corona Messages ! pic.twitter.com/O3IbzSauIq
— Jawhar Sircar (@jawharsircar) April 4, 2020
Similarly, a Hyderabad policeman sang his version of ‘Ek Pyaar Ka Nagma Hai’ from the Hindi movie Shor (1972) and incorporated the lines “Hum sabne nibhana hai, Zindagi ko hum sabhi ko corona se bachana hai” (We all have to save our lives from corona).
A small contribution from a COP#HyderabadCityPolice#HyderabadLockDown#StaySafe #StayHome #Covid19 pic.twitter.com/xUb3w9Dpz2
— Hyderabad City Police (@hydcitypolice) April 13, 2020
Punjab Police went a step ahead and released a music video of Sub-Inspector Baljinder Singh, popularly also known as Pamma Malhi, singing about the coronavirus. The song is an original composition, written by Assistant Sub-Inspector Partap Waris.
A song by SI Baljinder Singh @ Pamma Malhi of Punjab Police trying to create awareness among the people of the State regarding precautions to be taken for containing the spread of coronavirus.
Join us in the fight against corona. pic.twitter.com/i7eMu3H6Hv
— DGP Punjab Police (@DGPPunjabPolice) March 31, 2020
Inspector General of Madhya Pradesh Police Vivek Sharma also chose to address his fellow police officials by singing the patriotic song ‘Hum Honge Kamyaab’ last week. Indore has emerged as a coronavirus hotspot, with a total of 328 coronavirus cases.
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‘Corona helmets’ and ‘Corona horse’
Police officers have also been taking to innovative accessories to make a point about the deadly nature of the pandemic.
Policemen in Hyderabad, Chennai and Bangalore were spotted wearing ‘corona helmets’ — red-coloured helmets with monstrous spikes coming out of them,
Telangana: Hyderabad City Police Commissioner Anjani Kumar flagged off a rally organised by city Traffic Police to spread awareness on #COVID19, yesterday. Hyderabad Traffic Police personnel were seen sporting 'Corona helmets'. pic.twitter.com/s2cbjjfDnK
— ANI (@ANI) March 31, 2020
While in Andhra Pradesh, photographs of Sub-Inspector Maruthi Shankar riding a ‘corona horse’ had gone viral earlier last month. Strapped onto a white horse with red spots, Shankar was seen making announcements related to Covid-19 in the Kurnool district of the state.
Uttarakhand police officials collaborated with an artist and dressed up as ‘Yamraj’ — the Hindu God of Death — to emphasise importance of staying home and the dangers of the disease.
#WATCH Uttarakhand: Police are spreading awareness about #Coronavirus in Haridwar through an artist dressed up as 'Yamraj', who is appealing to the people to stay at home and take necessary precautions. (07.04.2020) pic.twitter.com/141egK6ruh
— ANI (@ANI) April 7, 2020
Also read: Covid lockdown shows Indian police isn’t all brutal. Some officers can sing for us, feed poor
Busting fake news
Several police handles on Twitter are also actively engaged in busting fake news and misinformation on social media.
Last week, the Arunachal Pradesh Police called out a news report claiming that the state had 11 coronavirus patients, who could be traced back to the Tablighi Jamaat function in Delhi that took place in March. The state police handle took to Twitter to clarify that only one case of coronavirus had been registered in the state so far.
This is to clarify that Arunachal Pradesh has got only 1 COVID-19 positive case till date.
The reporting by Zeenews is false and does not carry any authenticity. pic.twitter.com/d74hBGDWbd
— ARUNACHAL IPR (@ArunachalDIPR) April 9, 2020
The Karnataka police has launched a website dedicated to fact-checking and busting fake news on coronavirus. The website can be used to cross-check any information doing the rounds, in order to ascertain its authenticity.
The Uttar Pradesh Police has also been consistently using Twitter to tackle misinformation on social media for the past two weeks.
@Uppolice @adgzonemeerut @igrangemeerut @digsaharanpur @Dineshdcop pic.twitter.com/ZYY6kNirAE
— Saharanpur Police (@saharanpurpol) April 5, 2020