• January 29, 2023

Overview of Policing at the Directors General of Police Conference

• GS 3 :Internal Security

In the news,

A conference of all the state and union territory directors general of police was held in Delhi.

Regarding Conference

• This is a yearly event organised by the Intelligence Bureau

• Its deliberations are presided over by the Director of the IB, who is regarded as the most senior police officer in the nation.

• Emerging trends in militancy and hybrid militancy in Jammu and Kashmir, Counter Terrorism challenges, Left Wing Extremism, capacity building, Prison Reforms, Cyber Crime, drug trafficking, radicalization, and other significant issues were discussed at the conference.

• The conference is the culmination of extensive discussions among police and intelligence officers from the local, state, and national levels on predetermined topics.

• Importance: It provides a conducive environment for the country’s top police officials to directly brief the Prime Minister on key policing and internal security issues affecting the nation, and to give their open and candid recommendations.

Enforcement in India

• Since “Police” is listed in the seventh schedule of the Indian Constitution, the State Governments are primarily responsible for implementing the various police reform measures.

• The Centre has made consistent efforts to persuade the States to implement the necessary reforms in the Police administration in order to meet the public’s expectations.

Existing Problems

• Problems at the grass-roots level are seldom addressed or discussed.

• Excluding model police stations and a few in major cities, the average police station presents a bleak picture —

o Dilapidated building,

o Case property such as motorcycles and cars strewn about the compound, no reception room,

o Filthy lockup, shabby furniture,

o Police registers kept in disorganised racks, etc.

• The overworked and exhausted staff is generally unresponsive, if not rude, and the available resources are limited.

• Some politicians may attempt to persuade or even intimidate the police into acting differently.

• According to the 2019 Status of Policing in India Report, police in India work at 77% of their authorised strength for an average of 14 hours per day.

• The housing facilities are inadequate.

• Personnel training is abysmal; training institutions have not kept up with the shifting paradigm on the law and crime fronts and are generally staffed by unwanted, unmotivated officers.

o Technology support leaves much to be desired;

• criminals are actually far ahead of law enforcement.

• Since independence, an estimated 36,044 police officers have died while performing their duties.

o Police duties in India are the most difficult in the world, and they will only become more difficult in the future.

Other concerns

Committees / Police Reform Commission

The National Police Commission (1978-1982), the Padmanabhaiah Committee on restructuring of Police (2000), and the Malimath Committee on reforms in the criminal justice system are notable examples of committees/commissions that have made significant recommendations regarding police reforms in the past (2002-03).

o In 1998, the Supreme Court of India appointed another committee, headed by Shri Ribero, to review the actions taken by the Central Government/State Governments/UT Administrations in this regard and to suggest ways to implement the pending recommendations of the above Commission.

NITI Aayog’s Suggestions

• The Niti Aayog has proposed the enactment of an organised crimes act, which would give the CBI statutory backing and move police and public order to the Concurrent List in order to combat rising interstate crime and terrorism within a unified framework.

The Supreme Court’s Prakash Singh decision regarding police reforms.

• In September 2006, the Supreme Court ordered all states and Union Territories to implement police reforms in a landmark ruling.

Conclusion and Future Steps

• Terrorist crimes, cybercrimes, drug trafficking, virtual currencies, etc., are all extremely vital topics.

o These must be discussed and plans developed to address them.

• The police station’s infrastructure must be upgraded with improved transport, communication, and forensic facilities, as well as its manpower.

• It is necessary to make police departments more sensitive and to train them in emerging technologies.

o We should make greater use of technological solutions, such as biometrics, etc.

• There is a need for increased cooperation between the State Police and Central Agencies in order to leverage resources and share best practises.

• It is time to address the fundamentals. Once the police station becomes an effective unit that inspires public confidence, many other things will fall into place automatically.