Forget the predictable play on the time-worn cop-and-criminal tale. Come April and you may be able to switch on to an authentic police channel. That is, if a proposal being submitted by Bangalore City Police to the state government is accepted.

Shankar Bidari, commissioner of police, the man behind the project told Governance Now that his department would submit the proposal by the middle of February and expect the government to respond within a month.

Why does the police feel the need to ride the airwaves, though? “Existing channels of communication, such as the media and our own advertising are not able to put out adequate information,” Bidari said, “I don't blame the media; they have their own constraints and priorities. That's why I thought we should have our own TV and FM radio channels.”

So what can you expect to watch and hear on these police channels? Bidari promises a mix of information on missing persons, stolen properties, wanted criminals, procedures for public services such as police verification of servants, discussions aimed at creating public awareness and real-time traffic updates.