LUDHIANA: The Punjab police plans to set up an elite crowd control training center (CCTC), the first of its (kind to the country, at Ladha Kothi in Sangrur district.

The proposal, prepared by the India Reserve Police (IRP), has been forwarded by the Inspector General, K.K. Atri, to the Director General of Police KPS. Gill, for getting the Union ~Home Ministry’s approval.

It has been formulated with a view to train the entire police force in the state in the delicate task of controlling mobs “with a minimum use of force and ~ without aggravating an already volatile situation.

Sunjiv Kalra, commandant of the “second IRP battalion, revealed that with the restoration of peace and democracy in the border state the law “and order priorities had changed and the public protests in the form of agitations and demonstrations to get their civic and other problems redressed might increase necessitating the police force to be prepared beforehand to tackle the situation. ‘The IRP training was already geared to meet this emerging challenge. The 1000odd jawans, who have been undergoing training at the Ladha Kothi center for the past one year are already being given basic training in crowd control and it is planned to organize specialized training on the same topic from next month.

At present, no other force in the country except the Rapid Action Force of the Central Reserve Police Force which was specially raised to control mobs and riots, it trained in unruly crowd management.

Kalra disclosed that the five IRP battalions raised in Punjab so far, were being equipped with the latest equipment, designed and manufactured by reputed firms on order, to be ready 10 manage the volatile mobs.

The jawans are being provided with polycarbonate shields, in place of traditional bamboo shields, to effectively face stone throwing mobs the new shields being procured on order from firms on Delhi. Bombay and Chandigarh are both very lightweight ‘and transparent to allow the cop a view of the charged crowd. However, these are much more protective and even withstand small weapon fire from a distance.

In place of traditional wooden lathis, the IRP jawans are being given polycarbonated lathis which are flexible like plastic, weigh one third of an ordinary lathi but are doubly forceful in striking and are far more durable. Polycarbonated shin guards, limb guards, helmets and jackets are the other superior body protectors being purchased for them.

Soon the IRP jawans being deployed in civilian areas in different cities, shall be putting up polycarbonated barriers and nakas. These too enable the cops on duty to have full view of the surroundings while seated behind the shield and open fire from a special slit in the naka if the need arises.

Kalra revealed that a novel weapon being provided to the IRP officers on field duty is the shock baton. It has a battery-operated shocking device on the free end which, when touched by anybody, produces electric current that scares away the assailant.

Article extracted from this publication >>  July 7, 1995