Society Security Guards & Cleaners : An Ode

Apr 22,2020 / By Karnika / No Comment

Stay Home, Stay Safe. If this is your mantra for survival through the Covid-19 crisis, then indeed you are blessed. However, that is not the fate of several individuals around us whose services have been deemed essential, either by government order or by the need of this hour. Some of these people cross our paths everyday, namely the society security guards and cleaners.

Coronavirus or not, our society security guards and cleaners are often the heroes of our communities without the cape. Their importance is only highlighted intensely in this situation. The security guards and cleaners are the residential communities’ frontline workers in this battle against COVID-19. Everyday, in thousands of residential communities across the country, security guards and cleaners are reporting for duty.

How Are Society Security Guards And Cleaners Helping to Contain The Pandemic?

With social distancing and isolation being the norm, a lot about how apartment complexes function has changed. There is a bar on the entrance of visitors, delivery personnel and domestic staff. The security guards are in charge of making sure this barring works. It is no mean feat to ensure this barring is implemented in a community of 200+ or 500+ or 1500+ units.

Contactless deliveries has become the new law in all housing societies. Correct receipt of all parcels, food or non food items, has become the responsibility of the security guards. It is their efficiency that is contributing to residents safely receiving their packages even at a time like this, without any confusion. Imagine the logistics security guards have to handle now when they take responsibility for implementing contactless deliveries for hundreds of families. It is also these guards, who besides their regular work of manning the gates, are ensuring all packages are received by the residents properly. A 1500+ units community in South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal is using it’s society security force as internal volunteers to assist senior citizens of the community. The force has risen high beyond their call of duty.

Another 300+ units apartment complex in Caranzalem, Goa rely on their security force to coordinate the delivery vans coming to the community with essential goods for the residents. They are working 24*7 for our safety, our convenience.

What About The Cleaners?

Imagine what if your community housekeeping staff decided to not come for work for safety concerns? The strict isolation and no-visitor policy will save you from COVID-19, but the piling garbage and the general lack of cleanliness will only lead to other problems – spread of bacterial or fungal infection, rampant movement of rodents and insects are a few things that come to mind. The cleaners today have become as much part of society security as the guards who patrol our premises.

All communities across the country have equipped security guards and cleaners with proper masks, gloves and aprons for their individual safety. A 3000+ units society in Bangalore has even arranged for the housekeeping staff to go through a complete medicated disinfection process after they are done with their work for the day.

We, at ADDA, take this opportunity to cheer for the unsung heroes of COVID-19 – our beloved society security guards and cleaners. They have shown us the true spirit of our motto to Rise High. We congratulate them for their sincere service to keep us safe in these unpredictable times.

Here is the link of a certificate we designed to show our gratitude to the community staff without whom we couldn’t have fought this battle so well. Please feel free to download it, fill up the gaps and present it to our foot soldiers to bring a smile on their face.

Society Security And Cleaners Appreciation Certificate

Capture Of Appreciation Certificate

Residents

5 Tips For Gated Community Security

Aug 26,2017 / By ambili / 1 Comment

We have covered the topic of gated community security multiple times, but since the world around us keeps changing every minute, it is kind of essential to stay updated about apartment safety on a regular basis. Burglars are coming up with more and more innovative ways to rob a house & dropping your guard could be dangerous.

So here are some things that you can do to make sure that your apartment stays safe at all times.

1. Strengthen overall gated community security

Individually securing your apartment sometimes isn’t enough. The entire compound needs to be better equipped to withstand every possible emergency.

Join hands with your fellow residents and discuss setting up a system that is hard to breach. CCTVs and security guards alone are obsolete these days. An app based gated community security system like ADDA GateKeeper is vital for overall management & security monitoring of residential complexes.

If you do not have one already, get one installed. The benefits that the ADDA Gatekeeper brings to your apartment complex are abundant. It offers the following –

As it is an App based Gated Community Security management system, it negates all the manual errors guards may commit.
Solid visitor management system that digitally records details of every visitor.
Alerts guards should a visitor overstay his/her welcome.
Sends instant notifications to residents about visitors which means even while away, residents will know who is dropping by.
Comes with an inbuilt panic alert system. If a resident is in danger, simply pressing a button sounds an alarm at the main gates and a safety contact of your choice.

2. Install a surveillance system

Even if you don’t have kids that you leave in the care of maids or too many valuables to speak of, a CCTV is recommended. The very presence of a CCTV will discourage maids and other potential criminals from committing a crime.

The ones that broadcast probably cost a little more than the ones that simply record. So you can opt of the latter, but it doesn’t hurt to have an extra set of eyes.

3. Better Locks

If the apartment you live in is rented, this is all the more applicable. It makes sense to have the old lock changed to a fresh and solid one. We never know if the previous tenant has a key or not. Even otherwise, if the home is your own, having a high-end, hard to break locking system for your door is strongly recommended.

The general understanding is that units on the lower floors are more prone to burglary and crimes as opposed to higher floor units. So if your flat it is on the lower floors, make it a point to change or strengthen your locks every few years. In plenty of cases, a simple screw driver or even hair clips can be bent to form tools to pick a lock with.

4. Secure your balcony

Again, more applicable for the units in the lower floors. It does make sense to install grills or other forms of protection in your balcony to deter criminals or sometimes even animals. The doors that lead inside from the balcony too must be strengthened so that they won’t be easily picked.

5. Never drop your guard

This involves a series of things that you must do to keep yourselves and your family safe. This is just a basic set of pointers, we recommend that you get to know your neighborhood and premises better so that you know what to look out for.

Beware of deception crimes. Burglars often pose as utility workers to gain access to your house. Having a system like ADDA Gatekeeper can do wonders in preventing such imposters.
Keep copies of the ID cards your domestic staff provide. If you are not around when they come for duty, having a CCTV helps keep an eye on them.
Make your valuables hard to find. Don’t go for the conventional key under the pillow system. Install wall safes or lockers that are pretty hard to break.
Connect with your neighbors. Know who lives around you.
Strongly urge your residents association to install a system like ADDA Gatekeeper which not only monitors visitors and other gate-related activities, but also gives you perks like pre-checking in visitors and lots more.

The Final Word

In today’s times when security is starting to be considered a myth, being on your guard is vital to ensure that you and family stay safe. We cannot stress enough on the importance of having a software based solution at the gates and within to not just secure your apartment but also to bring together the residents and make for better a quality life.

We hope you found the article useful and do let us know if you have any concerns or safety tips that you would like to share. Don’t forget to share this article with your friends. Cheers!

Residents

Indian Government Mandates Panic Alert Buttons In Mobiles

Aug 17,2017 / By ambili / No Comment

As per the statement issued late last year by the Indian Telecom Minister – Sri. Ravi Sankar Prasad, panic alert buttons have been made mandatory in all phones sold in Indian markets.

The rule has been imposed since 1st of January, 2017. While mobile manufacturers are still trying to make design changes to suit this need, the general public and officials see this as a welcome move.

With crimes and attacks against women in particular, showing a rise, this is certainly a step in the right direction towards ensuring security.

panic-alert-buttons

In addition to panic alert buttons, inbuilt GPS modules too will be a compulsory feature in mobiles sold in India. The Telecom Minister stressed that technology is something that is meant to make human life easier and secure and that this was one of the ways in which we could actually achieve it, especially for the safety of our women.

The Background & Why This Was Long Overdue

The idea of a panic alert buttons was proposed simultaneously by the public and officials shortly after the Delhi gangrape and murder case happened in late 2013. Many felt that such a system may have saved the poor woman’s life. The Nirbhaya incident, as it was called, sparked widespread panic and associations that supported women’s welfare and other similar causes stepped forth to seek Govt. support to set up the necessary framework to enhance women’s security.

With the Government’s support, the Nirbhaya fund was set up which further powered various other initiatives like the tie up with police and mobile service provider to dole out immediate assistance to women in danger.

The panic alert feature in cell phones is one that was unanimously supported by officials and the general public alike. It is a relief to see that it has been implemented without much delay. As citizens, we need to understand that we don’t all have personal guards or Z-level security. We could easily be in situations that require help from emergency services and family. This could be a feature that would save your life one day.

How Panic Alert Buttons Work

As of now, the feature is designed in such a way that a long press on the keys 9 or 5 would initiate a call to invoke an emergency service. In case this cannot be programmed into the phone, the power on/off button should invoke the emergency call when short pressed 3 times.

While it would have been nice to have a dedicated button for the purpose, the fact that it could be accidentally pressed raising a false alarm deterred the phone companies and the authorities.

However, many have expressed that they feel that this is not sufficient. Because the panic button alerts only officials and emergency services and not kin, the feature seems incomplete to many.

The Better Option

As this rule came into being only this year, many people are yet to upgrade to phones that have this feature. Some just do not have the inclination to upgrade either for whatever reasons. For such people, here’s an alternative that would require just a few clicks on your existing phone –

It’s simple. The ADDA app.

The ADDA ERP & Admin app is something that is designed to manage activities inside an apartment. MCs from 1200+ apartment complexes from around the country make use of it to manage their societies.

While the ADDA app is for the residents to communicate with themselves and the staff. It is hugely popular across the country with 18500+ apartments already using it for internal communication.

How’s this relevant to our topic? Easy. The ADDA app has an inbuilt panic alert feature which raises a compelling alarm when pressed. Except the ones who are alerted are people within close reach. Here’s who the panic alert will reach –

Security personnel at the gate
Neighbors or trusted contacts that you pick

As opposed to emergency services, these are people who are in your immediate vicinity and are therefore, capable of taking immediate action.

And It Comes With Benefits Too

As you may already know, ADDA is dedicated to improving life inside apartment complexes. If you don’t use it already, we strongly recommend that you try it out. Visitor management, guest notifications, Panic Alert, parking management, accounting, accounting, and billingand billing etc are some of the features that we have.

In fact, why don’t you try it today? – Request Demo

Tag Archives: residents security