“The law and order situation in our country today is under strain,” said Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh while addressing the 61st batch of Indian Police Service (IPS) probationers on Tuesday in New Delhi.
Elaborating further, the Prime Minister said, “There are a number of sources of this strain, there is terrorism, there is naxalism – left wing extremism, there is also regionalism and then communalism. All these four areas are of great concern and we have to ensure that they are not allowed to harm the unity and integrity of our country.”
“We are passing through difficult times. Maintenance of law and order is the first and foremost duty of any civilised state. And in the enforcement of law and order, in the administration of justice without fear or favour, you and your service play a very crucial role. I therefore urge you to do careful preparations apart from what you’ve learnt at the academy,” Dr. Singh advised the probationers.
He advised them that it was very important that they should be well versed in subjects like cyber crimes, in the disaster management activities of the State because disasters in India were now becoming more and more frequent. And invariably the Police Service is the first one which is called upon to act in times of disasters. So, management of disasters and how it is handled was a very important part of their responsibilities.
He also said that there were issues with regard to police reforms. They have been looked at from time to time. More should be done to ensure that police services operate on the frontiers of knowledge.
He stated that India cannot allow any group of people to go the misguided path of taking law into their hands. “We must do so in a manner which enhances the peoples’ trust and confidence in our administration particularly the police administration,” he said.
The Prime Minister said, “It is very important that all of us should be well equipped to recognise the problems that face the country. We must deal with these forces with a great degree of efficiency, commitment and with a sense of equity and fair play. But we are also dealing with our own citizens. If some of them have gone astray, we must bring them to the path of rectitude. But we must never forget that we are dealing with our own people. Therefore, while enforcing law and order, I think we must also be endowed with a spirit of fair play and equity. These are some of the issues which I notice our people expect from our police forces.”
