BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Saturday issued a 10-point directive to Odisha Police to control crime and strengthen security measures across the state.
Addressing the state-level DGP and IGP conference here, Majhi directed the senior officers and SPs to implement a Zero Tolerance policy against crime, especially offences related to women, while making the system citizen-centric and people-friendly.
“Police must at all times display polite and sensitive behaviour towards the citizens. A citizen approaching a police station is in some sort of distress and she/he must be treated with empathy and compassion in every step,” he stated.
The 10-point directive also includes raising the conviction rate to at least 75 per cent; curbing the drug trade by 2029; strengthening coastal security; enhancing cyber security; monitoring the dark web to check illicit online activities; strengthening intelligence gathering; modernising police stations; taking stringent action against extortion and forced collection of donations during the festive season along with building a corruption-free, dedicated and citizen-friendly policing system.
Majhi asked senior police officers and SPs to make investigations more professional and technology-driven. He said the police must work towards improving the conviction rate. Though the latest National Crime Records Bureau data has shown improvement to over 40 per cent from an earlier low, much more needs to be done, he said.
Setting a target of at least 75 per cent conviction, Majhi called for better investigation, use of technology and stronger prosecution for achieving it. On the drug menace, Majhi said the Nishamukta Odisha Abhiyan should go beyond seizures and arrests. The police, he said, must dismantle the entire supply chain as well as the financial syndicates behind the narcotics trade. He expressed confidence that crime would decline substantially once drug trafficking is effectively eliminated from the state.
Majhi directed the police to maintain strict surveillance on emerging technologies and the dark web as well as conduct widespread public awareness campaigns to prevent the citizens from falling prey to scamsters. He also stressed the need to secure Odisha’s 575-km coastline and directed the police to use the Command and Control Centre in Bhubaneswar and equipment such as drones to monitor the coast and prevent illegal infiltration.
With the festive season approaching, the chief minister directed the police to take stringent action against anti-social elements involved in extortion or forcibly collecting money in the guise of donations.
Majhi said the government is committed to provide the necessary resources, grants and administrative support for implementing police reforms and other proposals. In the last two years, 17,794 new posts have been created in the police department, of which 5,817 have been filled.
The CM reviewed the state’s law and order situation, internal and cyber security preparedness and plans for future policing. He also interacted with police officers and sought feedback on the problems and experiences in their respective areas. He urged the officers to work towards building a secure, empowered and prosperous Odisha, in line with the state’s industrial development agenda and the need to ensure the safety of citizens.
Chief secretary Anu Garg, DGP-in-charge Vinaytosh Mishra, additional chief secretary of Home department Hemant Sharma and other senior officials were present. The district SPs attended the programme via video-conferencing.