West Bengal rolls out 500 24x7 cybercrime help desks across state

Kolkata: The West Bengal government has launched Cybercrime Help Desks across 500 police stations which will operate around the clock, to fight cybercrime cases. With zero tolerance on women’s security, West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, launched women's help desks in every police station in Bengal and Durga Suraksha Squad, a specialized and highly trained squad of female police officers, deployed in every district and Commissionerate by West Bengal Police.

Adhikari said cyber crime is becoming like a pandemic. “Senior citizens are the main victims and they told me in "Jantar Darbar" how they lost money and savings due to cyber crime. I have received many complaints. In the coming days, we plan to appoint dedicated senior officers from the administration who will be given charge to manage cyber related issues.”

“There is a need for communication between the central government and state to control the menace. In the coming days senior officers will manage the cyber help desk exclusively with cyber police stations and other services,” CM said. The Durga Suraksha Squad members will be equipped with modern 313 brand-new motorbikes provided by the state government.


Appreciating the role of Kolkata police for working with promptness in Taratala incident recently, Adhiakri said, “I could not imagine that the Women’s help desk could be started so fast. I thought it would start in September. I know there is a manpower crunch and lack of infrastructure but I don’t want to get any complaints from citizens and want the help desk to function aptly.”

Director General of Police Sidh Nath Gupta outlined several major initiatives focusing on cyber security, women's safety, and police infrastructure development.

He pointed out how the "Golden Hour" is significant in cyber crime. The DGP emphasized that fighting cybercrime is one of the biggest challenges for police forces nationwide. To protect citizens, a new Cyber Help Desk initiative is being rolled out across 500 police stations and will operate around the clock. These help desks will be functional 24X7.

The Golden Hour is crucial in cyber fraud, the DGP explained that the faster a crime is reported, the higher the chance of freezing the defrauded money.

He also spoke about how the help desks will ensure that complaints are immediately uploaded to the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) via the 1930 helpline during this crucial "Golden Hour." They will also coordinate directly with District Cyber Cells to quickly remove illegal online content.