Kolkata: The state administration has reportedly launched a comprehensive probe through Lalbazar — after appointing independent auditors — into serious allegations regarding the systemic “misuse of human resources”, including the controversial recruitment and deployment of nearly 800 temporary home guards between April 2024 and March 2026, by a few senior officials within both Kolkata Police and Bengal Police. The scheme was originally sanctioned as a temporary traffic management measure. The recruited personnel were slated to manage heavy traffic diversions alongside Kolkata Police, Barrackpore City Police, and Howrah City Police during construction and repair works on Kona Expressway and Vidyasagar Setu. However, sources in the home department and various police commissionerates revealed the initiative was abruptly discontinued following a recent change of govt, bringing serious administrative irregularities to light.Investigators are looking into complaints that a significant portion of the temporary home guard cadre was diverted from public traffic duties for personal use. According to department sources, several aides of police personnel — including private cooks and drivers — were fraudulently enrolled in the scheme. These individuals allegedly drew monthly stipends of Rs 18,900 from the state exchequer without performing on-ground traffic duties for the stipulated hours.Further allegations indicate that senior officers routinely asked these personnel to perform unassigned duties elsewhere in an attempt to cover broader administrative resource shortages across commissionerates.However, police insiders maintain that the recruitment drive was not entirely compromised. A large section of the 800 recruits actually comprised genuine candidates, including athletes drafted under Kolkata Police’s sports quota, who actively reported for duty throughout the contract period.Senior cops have now sought detailed deployment registers, payroll records, and attendance logs from the affected commissionerates.
