Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday announced an annual grant of Rs. 2 Crores for advanced training of police personnel of all ranks, from constables to PPS officers, in the best domestic and foreign training centers, in order to empower them to meet the challenges of modern policing. Addressing a batch of new recruits of 18 Deputy SPs and 494 SIs – the largest ever group of directly recruited officials in these ranks of the Punjab Police, the Chief Minister expressed great pleasure at seeing a large number of women (196 in all, including seven Deputy SPs) among the probationers.Earlier, Captain Amarinder inspected the parade and took the salute from the march past, which included 18 probationary Deputy SPS and 494 sub inspectors. Probationary DSP Rupinderdeep Kaur was the All Round First, while Sarabjeet Kaur stood All Round First in Probationary Sub Inspector, whereas probationary Sub Inspector Rimpledeep Kaur was the All Round First in Intelligence category. In IT&T, Sub Inspector Rinku stood All Round First.Extending his best wishes to the new recruits, the Chief Minister expressed the confidence that they would contribute significantly to further strengthening the capabilities of the Punjab Police, which was among the best police force in the world.The Chief Minister said he was impressed with the parade and their high standards of training and drill, which he described as essential in view of the changing needs of policing in the transforming environment. He stressed the importance of inculcating the skills of electronic and IT policing among the men and women, noting that criminals today were adopting technology in a big way to evade the law.
Captain Amarinder cited the unique challenges faced by the Punjab Police to underline the importance of training for the men and women of Punjab Police to help them remain abreast of the latest in terms of equipment and technology to cope with the latest challenges. He wishes the probationers success in their career as they now got ready to serve the state and the nation as part of the Punjab Police force.On a nostalgic note, the Chief Minister recalled that his father had passed out from the same academy nearly a 100 years ago, while the parade had also revived memories of his own training at the NDA back in 1963.Identifying regular and high quality of training and skill development as the main reason for the excellence of the Punjab Police, the Chief Minister lauded the force’s recent spate of successes in improving the state’s law and order.With the force being unshackled from political control by his government, which had given a free hand to the Punjab Police, Captain Amarinder said there was a marked decline in the number of sacrilege cases and heinous crimes, along with elimination of gangsters and various mafias in the state.The Chief Minister congratulated the force for these achievements, and in particular their success in solving the cases of targeted killings and hate crimes perpetrated in the state before his government took over. With this, he pointed out, the police had successfully foiled a major bid by the ISI and their handlers/operatives based in Pakistan to revive terrorism in Punjab.Referring to the historic Phillaur Fort, where the Academy is located, the Chief Minister congratulated PPA for its role in preserving the historic monument and announced a grant of Rs. 3 Crores for the repair and restoration of the Museum, old classrooms and hostels.On the occasion, the Chief Minister conferred one Police medal for gallantry. He also presented President’s Police Medals for distinguished services to seven officers, including, Director Vigilance BK Uppal, IG Gurpreet Deo, DIG Ranbeer Khatra, Additional IG Arun Saini and Addl DG Rohit Chaudhry. In addition, 59 Police medals for meritorious services were presented to 3 ADGPs, 2 IGPs, 2 DIGs, 12 SSPs/Commandants/DCP/AIG, 1 DSP, 18 Inspectors, 14 Sub Inspectors, 14 ASIs and a Head Constable.Talking to mediapersons later, the Chief Minister said he was in favour of naming the Mohali airport as Shaheed Bhagat Singh Airport in memory of the great hero of India’s independence struggle.In response to a question, Captain Amarinder said the Maur Blast investigations were in advanced stage and any disclosures at this moment could hamper the probe. The findings would be made public once the case is solved, he added.Prominent amongst others present on the occasion included Lok Sabha Member Chaudhary Santokh Singh, DGP Mr Suresh Arora, DGP Mr D Chattopadhya, Director PPA Phillaur Mrs Anita Punj and others.