The Hindu : Kerala News : Students, police to join hands for campus peace

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Monday, Nov 05, 2007
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Kerala

Students, police to join hands for campus peace

Koyilandy will see the campus community policing initiative first in the district, writes Biju Govind.

The community policing scheme on campuses will be first implemented in Koyilandy municipality in Kozhikode district. The scheme has been initiated in the wake of the killing of an Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police, M.C. Elias, in a clash on the NSS Hindu College campus in Changanassery last week.

The police have initiated steps to launch the scheme in various parts of the State. However, unlike the general community policing scheme drawn up for neighbourhoods to curb crimes, campus community policing will be a collaborative effort between the police personnel and students to put an end to unrest on campuses.

Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said on Friday that campus community policing had become very much relevant after the appalling killing. Modalities would be worked out to implement the scheme in December. “The police need to do some homework before implementing the scheme. Discussions with political parties had already been held. Now consultations will be held with various students’ organisations,” he said.

Campus community policing will foster better ties between the police and students. Select educational institutions, including schools, will be covered by the innovative scheme. Each police station will carry out a study of the colleges and professional institutions before embarking on the scheme, Mr. Balakrishnan said.

He said Inspector-General of Police B. Sandhya had been assigned to monitor the activities of community policing in the State. Students, staff and non-teaching staff would be selected from each educational institution as volunteers.

They would be given training on various aspects and would carry out surveillance on campuses, the Home Minister said.This committee will identify law and order problems on the campuses and take steps to solve them. The scheme will forge bonds of understanding not only between the warring student organisations but also between administrators and law enforcers.

As of now, the police department has launched traffic clubs in schools in the city. Complaint boxes have been installed at some campuses for students to inform the police about private bus workers’ misbehaviour with girl students inside buses and other harassments against them. However, if the scheme is to succeed, heads of institutions should come forward to cooperate with the department, a senior official said.

Campus community policing will also help to improve the skills of students as well as help the police to devise measures to tackle the growing menace of extremists and terrorist organisations attempting to get a foothold on campuses, he said.

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