PATNA: The Bihar government raised the country’s first tribal women police battalion named the 'Bihar Police Swabhiman Vahini' with a strength of 675 constables.
Lauding the Bihar police, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday at the party’s conference, said that the empowerment of women in all walks of life is one of the top priorities for the state government "and the country’s first 'Bihar Police Swabhiman Vahini' is a living example of our dedication and commitment to uplift the lives of ST women."
The passing out parade of this battalion was held last Wednesday at Patna’s Mithilesh stadium.
Exuding confidence, the women police - the majority of whom belong to tribal communities, exhibited their skills at the parade before the chief guest DGP Gupteshwar Panday and other senior officers of the department.
Speaking to this newspaper, ADG (CID) Vinay Kumar said that majority of the battalion included constables who are part of ST communities from Bettiah, Jamui, Rohtas and other areas.
“The women cops recruited in this battalion displayed marvellous talent during training and exhibited a high degree of professional skill,” he said.
He said that the battalion's permanent headquarters would be at Valmikinagar in West Champaran but for the time being, they have been stationed at BMP-5 till the infrastructure is set up.
ADG (HQ) Jitendra Kumar confirmed that the battalion, being the first in the country, underwent rigorous training for several months at the BMP-2 headquarter in Rohtas.
The parade was headed by a woman constable Karuna Hansdah belonging to the Tharu tribe.
According to the ADG (HQ), a requisition has been made to the Central Selection Board of Constable to make another round of recruitment.