Hero MotoCorp has presented 100 scooters – Destini 125 and Maestro Edge 125 to women coppers of the Gorakhpur Police Department. The police specific scooter fleet is equipped with GPS system, sirens, flash lights, public announcement (PA) systems, pepper spray and other essential police accessories.
With the Hero scooters now available, women cops who are a part of special ‘Sherni Dasta’ squad will be able to undertake patrolling duties more effectively. Project Sakhi, a Hero MotoCorp Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative functions in association with police departments. The objective is to enable women cops with two-wheelers to increase their independent mobility.
Hero MotoCorp is associated with state police departments of 11 Indian states including – Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Telangana, Haryana, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Karnataka, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh and one Union Territory – Puducherry. To date, the company has handed over more than 2900 two-wheelers to police departments.
The scooter lot that took part in a ceremonial ride on the occasion of handover was largely black in colour. The scooters have Gorakhpur police written at least twice on the scooters to ensure road users are able to identify them at ease. Scooters are a convenience in India with a large number of women using them. With scooters being convenient to climb onto, well balanced, sufficient in terms of storage and comfy for two, they enjoy a wide appeal across age groups.
Under the current circumstances, increased police patrolling is an expectation. With partial lockdown parameters in practice, the need of the hour has been to focus on social distancing, and not have people gather and loiter. The new addition to the fleet will boost patrolling duty.
The coppers in charge were seen using half face helmets, with the pillion day person carrying a baton. Fleet inaugural ride participants were photographed wearing a mask, but with rider and pillion onboard, physical distancing of a metre is unlikely to be a requirement that can be maintained. When lockdown was partially eased starting in May, it was a strict requirement to have only a single rider on a two-wheeler.
While BSIV to BSVI transition was an issue for certain manufacturers owing to the start of Covid-19 lockdown towards March 2020 end, Hero had been able to make the transition for it’s scooters before the deadline of March 31, 2020. BS6 Hero Destini 125 and Maestro Edge 125 are powered by a 125 cc single-cylinder engine.