Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Dec 01, 2007
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Online edition of India's National Newspaper Saturday, Dec 01, 2007 ePaper |
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The low percentage of women in the country’s police force is a major cause of concern for a society that believes in gender equality. And statistics now available reveal that the Delhi police are faced with a similar problem. At present, there are over 1,100 inspectors in the Delhi police and of these a meagre 74 are women. Statistics provided by the force in reply to an application filed by a Right to Information activist, Dev Ashish Bhattacharya, provide another disturbing insight: only five of the 74 women inspectors are currently holding the post of Station House Officer, nine of Inspector (Law and Order), and 10 of Inspector (Investigation). There are 13 women Indian Police Service officers of the Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Mizoram and Union Territories (AGMU) cadres, of whom five are presently posted with the Delhi police. And of these five, just one is posted as the Deputy Commissioner of Police of a district. “Only six of the 25 women Delhi Andaman Nicobar Island Police Service officers posted with the Delhi police are currently placed in the districts,” reveals Mr. Bhattacharya, adding that this shows women officers are not being encouraged to take up “hard’ postings. Kiran Bedi, the country’s first and surely the best known woman IPS officer who has now applied for voluntary retirement two years ahead of superannuation, feels there is neither a dynamic policy nor a dialogue on the issue of proper postings for women officers. According to her, this approach reflects a sadly traditional mindset of general distrust in the capabilities of women. “There is lack of trust and so the women police functionaries are not placed at right positions, because of which there is no visibility,” says Ms. Bedi, adding that this is one of the factors that discourages many women from joining the police service. According to Ms. Bedi, women officers can play a vital role in every aspect of policing provided they are given a chance. “Today the corporate industry has understood the importance of ‘soft skills’ like communication that is inherent in women,” she says, adding that the forces should also take advantage of the intrinsic capabilities of women officers. Whether women in the force are discriminated against is a debatable issue as many women police officers feel the situation now is far better than what it was a decade ago. “Earlier women did not opt for police service considering it to be a man’s domain. But in the past few years they have started showing interest in the job and are being given all kinds of assignments,” says another woman police officer. Conceding that the percentage of women in the force is very low, the officer says efforts are being made to increase their strength. In this direction, the Delhi police had recruited nearly 1,000 women police constables about a year ago. But surely a lot more needs to be done. Devesh K. Pandey
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