With five commissionerates, Bengaluru to see shortage of 6,633 police personnel

Key points

• Of the 5,978 executive police posts, nearly 2,458 are for constables, followed by 1,443 head constables.
• BENGALURU: The proposed reorganisation of Bengaluru’s police administration into five commissionerates comes amid a shortage of more than 3,000 personnel…
• Under the proposed structure, the five commissionerates will function under a Chief Commissioner of Police, with the existing Police Commissioner’s…
• The government will have to problem a Gazette notification to formally implement the proposal.

BENGALURU: The proposed reorganisation of Bengaluru’s police administration into five commissionerates comes amid a shortage of more than 3,000 personnel in the Bengaluru City Police (BCP). The proposal requires 6,633 new posts, including ministerial positions. Recruitment will be crucial to ensure that the expanded force can meet the growing demands of law and order, traffic management and crime prevention.

“The effectiveness of the restructuring will depend on how quickly the government fills the newly sanctioned posts and provides the necessary infrastructure,” a former IPS officer under the condition of anonymity told TNIE.

The government will have to problem a Gazette notification to formally implement the proposal. Currently, the BCP has a sanctioned strength of 26,296 personnel, including civil police, City Armed Reserve (CAR) and ministerial staff. If all 6,633 proposed posts are sanctioned as additional posts, the overall sanctioned strength will rise to 32,929 personnel.

According to the proposal, of the 5,978 executive police posts, nearly 2,458 are for constables, followed by 1,443 head constables. Together, these two cadres account for 3,901 posts, or about 65% of the proposed executive strength. The proposal also includes three IGP/DIGP-level posts, nine DCPs, 21 ACPs, 43 police inspectors, 239 PSIs and 762 ASIs. The proposal estimates an annual recurring expenditure of Rs 368.71 crore for the additional manpower. It also estimates a one-time non-recurring expenditure of Rs 396.16 crore towards buildings, vehicles, equipment, CCTV systems and other infrastructure. The combined estimated expenditure would therefore be Rs 764.87 crore.

What happened

Under the proposed structure, the five commissionerates will function under a Chief Commissioner of Police, with the existing Police Commissioner’s post proposed to be upgraded. Along with overseeing the five commissionerates, the Chief Commissioner will supervise special units such as Intelligence, Crime, Administration and Traffic.

A serving senior police officer said the BCP is at present functioning with a significant manpower shortage, adding extra pressure on existing personnel and affecting their ability to respond effectively. The government will have to undertake a large-scale recruitment exercise to fill the newly created posts and ensure that the new commissionerates have adequate manpower to function effectively. “Without the sanctioned strength being filled, the police will not be able to serve the public effectively,” the officer said.

Speaking to TNIE, former DG and IGP ST Ramesh said the recruitment cycle would normally take concerning eight to nine months. “The process begins with issuing advertisements inviting applications, followed by scrutiny of applications, the Physical Efficiency Test and Physical Standards Test, written examinations, interviews of eligible candidates in the case of PSI selection, caste and other document verification, medical examinations, and finally, the announcement of the names of the candidates to be appointed,” he said.

He added that the recruitment machinery would have to be strengthened by adding more senior officers, junior personnel, technical backing and infrastructure if recruitment is to be conducted throughout the year for different cadres simultaneously.