VIJAYAWADA: Andhra Pradesh police stood first in the country in carrying out investigation and filing chargesheets in cases related to crimes against women and children, according to data collated through the Ministry of Home Affairs’ analytics tool — Investigation Tracking System for Sexual Offences (ITSSO).
The ITSSO recorded the State’s actual compliance rate at 93.8 per cent this year (till October 30) against 41.7 per cent in 2020, 14.15 per cent in 2019 and 13.47 per cent in 2018. The improved figures indicate speedy investigation and chargesheeting the cases related to offenses against women and children within the stipulated period of 60 days.
The MHA launched ITSSO in February 2019 to monitor and track time-bound investigation in sexual assault cases. In a press release issued on Wednesday, Director General of Police (DGP) D Gautam Sawang explained that police action and investigation in the cases of crime against women and children (under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act) across the country are monitored and tracked by the MHA.
Recalling that Union Home Minister Amit Shah had praised the State police’s performance in the recently held South Zonal Council meeting at Tirupati, Sawang said: “AP police surpassing all of their counterparts in the country is an indicator of the effectiveness of the State government’s DISHA initiative. One of the components of the initiative is building police capacities and competencies to ensure that the crimes against women and children are speedily investigated and the accused are brought to book at the earliest.”
As per the data obtained from the police department, a total of 1,307 FIRs were registered from January 1 to October 30, and chargesheets were filed in 1,060 of them. Visakhapatnam topped the list by filing chargesheets in 173 cases followed by East Godavari (159) and Krishna (126).
The DGP praised DIG (technical services) G Pala Raju and his team for the excellent performance in the investigations. “CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has given top priority to safety and security of women and children. As such, we have taken various measures in a multi-pronged and holistic manner to create an ecosystem in which women and children feel safer every day.”
The Chief Minister praised the police and urged the department to strive for even a better performance. ”The Union Ministry of Home Affairs data once again demonstrate the commitment and excellence of the State police in serving the society,” Jagan observed.
MHA tool launched two years ago
The MHA launched ITSSO in February 2019 to monitor and track time-bound investigation in sexual assault cases. It recorded the State’s actual compliance rate at 93.8 per cent this year (till October 30) against 41.7 per cent in 2020, 14.15 per cent in 2019 and 13.47 per cent in 2018