RAJASTHAN: According to famous author Ambrose Hollingworth, “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgement that something else is more important than fear.” The essence of this quote is being exemplified by a young police officer, Chhavi Sharma, the Circle Officer of North Circle of Ajmer district in Rajasthan. This bright and brave woman RPS officer had recently shot into the limelight, that too in her very first posting, when during night patrolling, she tried to stop some suspicious people in a vehicle. Her jeep was hit and the people escaped into a forest, Chhavi, however, did not stop chasing them and eventually arrested them.
Chhavi’s courage and passion for her work also spills into other areas of her life. She visits slum areas every 15 days and reaches out to children and youngsters in coaching institutes and interacts with them, inspiring them to change the lives of their families by acquiring education or new skills.
Given Chhavi’s determined efforts in many slums of the city, children and youth now call her ‘Police Didi’ and when she meets them, their faces light up. She says that she wants to remove the sadness on the faces of the children. “Meaningful education cannot come without motivation. Unless the youngsters feel that their circumstances will change, they will not put in effort. So I try to tell them how education can help them”, she says.
Chhavi also mentions that the children and youth of different sections of society have different kinds of problems. She adds that many of the youngsters have no money, no school fees, and have distractions so they must have a good guide.
She said, “I tell them that they should not feel that they can’t do anything. I tell them, conditions will change, things will change, do not lack in your hard work, and one day you will be a success story.”
As she belongs to a family of academicians, Chhavi gives more focus to education. Her father is a retired scientist in plant breeding but she got the inspiration to do this work from her grandfather, Chandmal Sharma, who has been a well-known professor of Philosophy. He runs two schools in Jaipur and Jodhpur in slum areas. “Education can change someone’s life, so either you can teach a skill or educate someone. In my time I taught children whenever and wherever I got a chance”, said her grandfather.
Before becoming a police officer, Chhavi was a lecturer of Economics at the Kanodia Girls College in Jaipur. She joined the Rajasthan Police service in 2019.
In the future, Chhavi wants to wants to build a dharamshala near Jaipur’s SMS hospital. She believes that if even one person gets inspired by her efforts, then her endeavour will be successful.