Understaffed force makes policing go for a toss in Bhopal

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Gruesome incidents of a woman being stabbed by her husband in Ayodhya Nagar in broad daylight, and a collection agent being robbed by six men at 1100 quarters in noon hours have put the Bhopal police in a tight spot.

Absence of police personnel on the streets of the state capital have resulted in an increase in number of gruesome crimes and nefarious activities; majority of which are taking place in broad daylight.

When the issue of public policing was put up before the top officials of Bhopal police, they citing shortage of staff, said the Bhopal police force was short of around 1500 police personnel for efficient functioning.

Officials, however, maintained that the severity of the crimes might have increased, the crime rate has been on decline for the last five months. Crimes in every category such as rapes, molestations, thefts, burglaries, assault and others have seen a sharp decline across the city, they added.

The senior officials informed that the police force in Bhopal comprises approximately 3500 police personnel, out of whom 90 are deployed on VIP duties, while around 600 are instructed to ensure the upkeep of law and order in the city .

Adding to the statements, the officials said the list of grievances and criminal cases in the police stations of Bhopal is so high that the police personnel are often busy in probing them and this leads to less public policing thus leading to increase in gruesome incidents at public places.

Sources in the Bhopal police commissionerate system, though stuck to the claim that the crime rate has declined in the past few months, said that crime follows a particular trend according to the seasons. Elaborating on the same, they said that a majority of murders and chain snatching incidents occur in the summer season, while thefts and burglaries rise during the winters due to longer hours of darkness.

Bhopal police short of 1500 personnel: Bhopal CP

Commissioner of police (CP) of Bhopal, Harinarayanachari Mishra said that the Bhopal police are already short of 1500 police personnel, and every three months, other police personnel are retired after they attain the upper age limit, thereby making public policing a difficult chapter for the police. He added that required action will be soon initiated to rope in more police personnel in the Bhopal police force.