Date:22/05/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/05/22/stories/2006052215140600.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Give career planning its due, say police officers

K.T. Sangameswaran

Absence of time-bound promotion another irritant

CHENNAI: As the new Government settles down, police officers are looking forward to proper career planning and time-bound promotions, in addition to the ongoing schemes to modernise the force.

Proper planning of their service, a reasonable period of stability of posting allowing them to specialise in various wings and systematic training will enable them to perform effectively, say a cross-section of police officers.

Tamil Nadu has six Directors-General of Police (DGPs), including the head of the force, over 20 Additional Directors-General of Police and 25 Inspectors-General of Police. The State has 190 IPS officers. According to official records, as on January 1, 2005 the sanctioned strength of the executive staff was nearly 95,000.

Crucial aspect

What has been agitating the officers for long is that their career planning has been ignored. Tamil Nadu is no exception to the general trend, as in almost all other States too no such exercise has been undertaken.

An Additional Director-General of Police says it will be in the fitness of things if postings are given to the officers in a graded manner, depending on their performance and seniority, to ensure that they have a reasonable experience in various wings before taking up senior-level assignments. But "favouritism" and "dumping" of officers have become an established practice, resulting in frustration and wasteful expenditure.

Absence of time-bound promotion is another major irritant. Taking into account the disillusion that may creep in among senior officers in the absence of timely promotion, more posts have been created to accommodate them in higher positions. "But, it up to the police brass and the Government to ensure that the services of such officers are utilised in the best possible manner," points out a senior officer.

Stress on training

Time-bound recruitment of personnel has not been accorded the importance it deserves, points out a Superintendent of Police.

With white-collar crimes, particularly cyber crimes, on the increase, proper training of the personnel is essential. Above all, sufficient attention should be bestowed to changing the attitude of the personnel, especially during their training period.