Jharkhand govt to provide support to increase women's share in state police

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Saturday said his government will provide all required support to increase the participation of women in state police up to 50 per cent in the coming days.

Addressing the concluding ceremony of two-day state-level women police conference, he emphasised the need for framing a rule in a bid to promote women as in-charge of police stations.

"Women are capable of contributing equally as men not only in the police department but in all aspects of society. We need to bridge the gap. I want women police personnel to progress in such a way that their participation increases up to 50 per cent from the existing 5-6 per cent in state police. The government will provide support for this," he said.

 

Soren highlighted that when a woman who has been harassed visits a police station, her case diary is often written by a male officer. He questioned, "Why shouldn't it be handled by a woman officer?"

He suggested that in environments predominantly occupied by women, such as women colleges, nursing schools, and medical colleges with women hostels, interactions should be directly with women police officers. This would ensure that women can more comfortably present their concerns, he added.

The Chief Minister also proposed that such conferences should be held every six months and recommended organising separate conferences for male police officers to address their issues.

Soren noted that there are frequent demands for some cases to be handed over to the CBI or ED.

He questioned, "What special technology or training do these agencies have that cannot be provided to our state police? If we strengthen our own mechanisms and basic structures, our police could also resolve major cases."

Jharkhand DGP Anurag Gupta said several recommendations emerged from the two-day conference. He noted that some issues could be addressed at the headquarters level, while others involve policy matters.

Gupta identified five key areas where improvements are needed in the police department to address women police issues - posting, promotion, transfer, treatment, and harassment. He assured that efforts would be made to resolve these issues as quickly as possible.