SHILLONG: Chief Minister Conrad Sangma said on Saturday his government will act “firmly and decisively against inimical and mischievous elements” indulging in violence or working against the interest of the nation.
Speaking at the passing out parade of the 46th Batch Basic Course trainees at the North Eastern Police Academy (NEPA), Sangma said the government is willing to walk an extra mile to talk peace with those who are willing to engage with it within the framework of the Constitution.
“The government will not tolerate any anti-social behaviour… and the state will act firmly against such activities,” he added and stressed the need for all northeastern states to adopt a unified, coordinated and cohesive strategy to tackle common threats.
“Police in the North East have a special role to play, compared to the police in the rest of the country. The challenges are multiple because each state shares a border with another country and many of the inimical and criminal elements take advantage of cross border and international linkages to escape the clutches of law,” the chief minister said.
Urging the young officers to work hard, he said it is their primary responsibility to collect intelligence on any issue that poses a threat to internal security, resolve conflicts and maintain law and order, thereby instilling a feeling of security in the community. The chief minister emphasised that police of the NE states should act in coordination and there should be close liaison between the state police and the border guarding CAPFs like Assam Rifles, BSF, ITBP and SSB deployed along the borders in the region to ensure seamless coordination and prevent ingress of undesirable elements. According to Sangma, NEPA should act as a nodal training agency to design and conduct specialised training modules for the police of the region as well the CAPFs deployed in the North East borders in order to ensure uniform strategy and streamlining of efforts as this uniform training would ensure cohesiveness between the NE States Police and add to effective control of crime, and help to check the menace of crimes like narcotics and human trafficking that afflicts the North East.
