Pvt, public parties owe Rs 54 cr to police dept

Over Rs 54 crore in outstandings is owed to the Mumbai police department by over 1500 private individuals as well as public sector undertakings for the last few years for providing guarding, escort and protection services.

Even the majority of dance bars that have been in the news recently with the state government serious about implementing a ban on their functioning have failed to clear dues to the tune of 13.80 lakh (read Rs 500 per day is charged as performance charges for being allowed to exhibit semi-classical dance performances).

The largest portion of the Rs 54 crore debt is owed by the Mumbai Port Trust (MPT), that even after making a payment of Rs 17.70 crore, way back in December 2004 has managed to run up a pending bill of nearly Rs 45 crore todate.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), comes in second with an outstanding amount of Rs 7.07 crore it still has to pay the friendly neighbourhood police station that sends a posse of sleuths for keeping the peace when demolition drives are undertaken by the civic body.

The most recent example was when the BMC launched a massive demolition drive to rid Mumbai of the illegal slums that mushroomed in the city after 2000.

Confirming the various outstanding joint commissioner of police (administration) Subhash Awate says: "In the case of BPT three police stations of Mumbai city, including the Yellow Gate Police station that handles the bulk of the work pertaining to securing the the ports huge land holdings in south Mumbai, are involved in offering daily services. However, in many instances it may be a matter of disputed calculations of the outstandings."

Another issue, according to Awate relates to certain posts specifically having to be created by the police.

"For instance if the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) needs some police personnel for work of a permanent nature new posts would have to be created. In such instances we would expecte the RBI to bear the full salary, allowances as well as provident fund and gratuity payments for these personnel. Very often the organisations are not willing to pay the provident fund and gratuity and a dispute in payments arises."

It is not only government run organisations that have failed to pay up the Mumbai police for services rendered. More than 1500 private individuals have failed to clear an outstanding amount of Rs 5.75 crore owed to the city police for security.Another segment of the civilian population has run up a bill of Rs 1, 14, 650 owed to the police department for the issuance of character certificates to them by the police department. What it reflects about the loose character of such individuals is quite apparent.

But for a police force that reckons it is second only to the Scotland Yard being unable to effect recoveries of its outstandings even with a 39,000 plus strong police force certainly exhibits its weak character.