Best staffed and equipped police force in the country? Delhi tops the list

The study of 11,000 personnel in 22 states used available government data to analyse and rank the performance of state police on parameters of staffing, infrastructure and budget.

Business Standard : The Delhi police are India’s best in terms of staffing, infrastructure and use of budget, followed by Kerala and Maharashtra, a new study has revealed. Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Bihar are the worst and most overworked among the 22 states analysed.

These findings are based on a Police Adequacy Index, derived from national data, part of the ‘Status of Policing in India Report 2019’, released on August 27, 2019 by Common Cause and Lokniti–Centre for the Study Developing Societies, a nonprofit and a think tank, respectively, based in New Delhi.

The study of 11,000 personnel in 22 states used available government data to analyse and rank the performance of state police on parameters of staffing, infrastructure and budget. Researchers also interviewed 11,834 police personnel across 105 locations in 21 states between February and April 2019. The survey covered the personnel’s opinions over adequacy of police infrastructure, their duties and their perception over several types of crimes and different sections of the society. You can IndiaSpend’s full coverage of the study, here and here.

The index

To derive indices, researchers used data from the Bureau of Police Research and Development and the National Crime Records Bureau for the following parameters:

Strength:

Police strength as a percentage of sanctioned strength (2012-16 average)

Infrastructure

Police stations having vehicles (2012-16 average)

Police stations having telephones and wireless (2012-2016 average)

Computers per police station (2012-2016 average)

Budget

Police expenditure as a percentage of budget (2014-16 average)

These indicators are then used to derive index scores on each of the three heads: An index score of zero indicates the worst performing state and a score of one indicates the best performing state.

Overall, as of 2016, Indian police forces were working at 77.4 per cent of their sanctioned capacity, the study said, leading to personnel being overworked.

How this cop is saving lives by fighting fake news spread on Whatsapp

With an election due in 2019, some worry a surge of fake, politicised messages could lead to more violence, stoking broader Hindu-Muslim tensions and sparking religious riots.

Local musicians are already singing about the evils of fake news when police superintendent Rema Rajeshwari’s convoy rolls up to the dusty village square in one of India’s poorest communities. "Don’t believe these things," a performer cries out to the crowd.


In a dark blue cap and stiff khaki uniform, Rajeshwari climbs onto a makeshift stage in front of hundreds of villagers. She’s there to try and stop the spread of bogus WhatsApp messages in her district that warn of child kidnappers and roving murderers.


Across India, social media rumors have caused rural villagers to patrol in anxious groups on the look-out for anyone they don’t recognize. These mobs have already killed numerous people. In May and June alone, at least six people died in WhatsApp-related mob attacks in eastern Assam, western Maharashtra and southern Tamil Nadu. There’s also simmering tensions over Hindu vigilante groups who’ve targeted and killed Muslims.


"You see these messages, these photos and videos, but you don’t check if they’re real or fake, you just forward them," Rajeshwari tells them. "Don’t spread these messages. And when strangers come to your village, don’t take the law into your hands. Don’t kill them."


With an election due in 2019, some worry a surge of fake, politicized messages could lead to more violence, stoking broader Hindu-Muslim tensions and sparking religious riots. The stakes are already high -- Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party is facing declining support, while opposition parties are planning to combine forces to take him on. Rajeshwari said she saw a spike in messages around recent state elections in the neighboring state of Karnataka, and fears more ahead of national polls.

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