Bengal government working to reduce police response time to emergencies: CM Suvendu
Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat respond to emergencies within six to 10 minutes. Why can't our state achieve this? Suvendu Adhikari asked police officials
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari launched the Emergency Response Support System (ERSS-112) on October 10, 2026, with the aim of reducing police response time. He unveiled 450 vehicles, including four-wheelers and motorcycles, as part of the system. Current average emergency response time for West Bengal Police is around 90 minutes, compared to 10-15 minutes for Kolkata Police.
Adhikari expressed dissatisfaction at the state's inability to match the response times of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, which are between six to 10 minutes. He urged police officials to work towards faster responses. Within a year, the state will provide four motorcycles and four cars to every police station. Adhikari also warned of severe consequences for anyone attacking police personnel and announced the recruitment of 1,500 drivers for the vehicles.
The Chief Minister highlighted the need to strengthen the state's policing capacity by increasing the number of police personnel per lakh population, which currently stands at 155 in West Bengal, compared to 200 in Uttar Pradesh. He also revealed plans to form a State Investigation Agency (SIA) to strengthen internal security and spearhead specialised investigations into terrorism, cross-border infiltration, anti-national activities, sabotage, and organised crime networks.
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