SHILLONG: Prem Singh, who took over as the new acting DGP from SB Kakati on Monday, said a new strategy would be chalked out to check the trend of policemen joining militant groups.
“Strict vigilance and supervision will be initiated to check the trend. All the SPs and commandants would be asked to keep vigil and constantly monitor their subordinates to prevent them from deserting of the police,” Singh told reporters after taking over the charge.
The concern over the trend was echoed even by the outgoing DGP, who said, “It is an area of concern for the Police department to see some of its men joining militant outfits.”
“The department has to address this problem by going into the root cause which prompted the policemen to turn into militants,” SB Kakati said.
Besides former DSP Champion R Sangma, who is the present “chairman” of GNLA, a police constable of the MLP 1st Battalion also reportedly joined the militant group recently.
However, Kakati refused to confirm the news as even GNLA “commander-in-chief” Sohan D Shira had denied the missing constable joining the outfit.
Expressing concern over the shortage of manpower in the police especially in its traffic wing, the outgoing DGP lamented that while the number of vehicles is going up every day the number of people manning the traffic remained the same.
He, however, said, “The manpower shortage would end once the four IRBn police battalions sanctioned by the Centre joined the State forces.”
He also attributed the shortage of human resources in the Police department as the State’s failure to control the influx.
On the rise in crime against women, the outgoing DGP advocated for better police investigation and social awareness besides speedy trial of the cases.
When asked about his memorable moments in his long career as the police officer, Kakati said, “It’s good to be back in my birth place and end my career here.”
Earlier, the new acting DGP said Police department would put in place a monitoring mechanism especially in terms of its performance.
“There will be regular crime conferences every quarter of the year to streamline the investigation process,” the DGP said.
Underlining the importance of professionalism among policemen, he said, “It would be our endeavour to see that the police personnel perform in a professional manner.”
On welfare of the police personnel, he said, “We would also take various welfare aspects of the police officer and men. Measures will also be initiated to address the grievances of the policemen.”