Union Home Minister Amit Shah has lauded Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for the improvement on law and order front across the state.
Addressing the concluding session of All-India Police Science Congress (AIPSC) in Lucknow on Friday, Shah, however, stressed the need for bringing about a positive change in people’s perception about the men in uniform and vice versa.
The Union Home Minister also gave an assurance on introducing a bill to make necessary changes in the existing Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) in the ongoing session of Parliament.
“As we sit here and talk about narcotics control, smuggling, terrorism, naxalism, fake currency  and routine law and order, perhaps we do not know that the success that we are looking at has been at the cost of sacrifice of more than 35,000 jawans,” Shah said.
The Union Home Minister said that it was the duty of senior officers to motivate the jawans and let people realise that when the country was celebrating festivals, the men in uniform were doing their duty.
Shah also congratulated UP Police brass for organising the science congress but asked them to look at what was discussed earlier and whether it was implemented or not.
“It is good that important discussions on various issues were held at the science congress. But what is important is how much we are able to put it at the ground level and facilitate a foolproof internal security system,” Shah said.
The Union Home Minister also highlighted how the security forces guarded boundaries along 15,000 kilometres of land and 75,000 kms of coastal line to ensure that no one was able to create any internal disturbance.
Claiming that the nation was progressing on all fronts after Narendra Modi took over as Prime Minister, Shah said that it was the duty of everyone to check supply of counterfeit currency and other unlawful activities.
“If we want to make our dreams of making India a trillion dollar economy a success, then we must check pumping of fake currency into the market. For better control, the Union Home Ministry and the state government should work in tandem,” Shah asserted.
The Union Home Minister also stressed on improving beat policing, bringing changes in jail manuals, traffic management, prosecution etc.
“Big offices or technology does not help in maintaining law and order or controlling crimes. What we need is full sincerity and dedication to achieve targets. But if we fail to do so, then the science congress would just be like coming for a picnic,” Shah added.
The Union Home Minister assured the gathering that the government would also fulfil the promise of a police university and a national forensic science university to help youngsters get expertise before joining the law enforcing agencies.
Welcoming the Union Home Minister, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that everyone knew the role of police in internal security and maintaining the rule of law but despite standing close to the public, members of the law enforcing agencies appear to not be with them.
“To be standing in public and making the people believe that you are there for them makes a big difference in changing the perception of the police. It is high time that the British era policing is changed and ‘community policing’ is adopted. It will immensely help in building a strong network but at the same time, khaki’s credibility (khaki ka iqbal) should be maintained among the people,” Yogi asserted.
The Chief Minister cited the example of successful celebration of Kumbh Mela through community policing which ensured that the gala event remained incident-free despite the fact that over 25 crore devotees participated in the 48-day event. He also highlighted how the police were able to maintain peace and order after major decisions like abrogation of Article 370 that gave special status to Kashmir and after the Supreme Court verdict on Ayodhya issue.
Besides the Union Home Minister and Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma, Chief Secretary RK Tewari, DGP OP Singh and Additional Chief Secretary Awanish Awasthi were also present on the occasion.