After superannuation from Indian police service, & having relinquished the office of DGP- Maharashtra, I feel very content that I was at the helm of the Maharashtra state police which is considered to be the best in India and is held in high regard worldwide. My career journey began in 1977 as a young IPS officer, brimming with energy, twinkle in the eye and immense satisfaction of having been able to get into a career of my dreams.
As I set out in my career, I recall it was my resolve to put in my best efforts relentlessly to my assignments and beat the challenges that came in my way with gusto. It is now 39 years since and the years seem to have gone in a jiffy. When I look back, it seems only yesterday and I find my mind still battling with the best ideas possible to implement in the services. While officially the journey comes to a temporary halt, my heart & mind shall always remain with the police service. My endeavor to better the lot of the society through better policing efforts, shall however continue in the new phase of my life. I hope to contribute towards the betterment of the forces through the treasure of experience that I have imbibed in nearly four decades.
In service, I had the privilege to serve both in India and abroad. My stint at the Ministry of Home Affairs was quite challenging and I feel satisfied that during my posting at Indo- Tibetan Border (ITBF) at Leh Ladakh, I was commended for my work. The varied assignments in departments like the one as Deputy Director in the Bureau of Immigration helped me in making a difference by improving the immigration check posts.
At Yashvantrao Chavan Academy for Development of Administration (YASHADA), Pune in my capacity as Deputy Director General -Training we designed very effectively the Training Manual for Protection & Promotion of Human Rights in English and Marathi. In the process, we were able to contribute to the attitudinal shift of policemen as well as other bureaucrats towards adopting scientific investigation. On international assignments to UK, Japan, Nepal and Myanmar I had the opportunity to review best practices in those countries and implement these in Indian context.
I had amazing time during my interactions with IPS probationers at the Sardar Vallabhbhai National Police Academy where I was regularly invited to address the new recruits. Inspite of my years of experience I used to be in awe of new recruits, for the energies they exuded and their innovative ideas and thoughts. I must confess that there were several occasions when I got inspired by them and reinvented my thought process.
The social media boom has been lapped up by all age groups and as chief of Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) we used it considerably to spread the message against corruption, educate and encourage people to lodge complaints online. We introduced a toll free number where complainants could call and ask for the procedure to lodge complaints. I can say, with confidence we tried to optimally use the social media to reach out to people so that they could voice their grievances. I believe that we should not be deterred by someone’s clout which may be due to their powerful position either politically or due to money.
We must dedicate ourselves truly and with all sincerity to our responsibilities. And with that spirit, we launched vigorous campaign against corrupt public servants and laid out traps on officials accepting bribe.
The key reason that inhibits people from initiating action is lack of knowledge about the procedures and for that we launched facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Maharashtra ACB). A portal called www.acbmaharashtra.net simplifying uploading of video, audio and digital complaints from mobile phones. These initiatives have strengthened and restored the faith of people in ACB.
Though there are several issues afflicting the society that are close to my heart but child labour somehow touches me the most. A concerted effort is required to eradicate this social evil so that children who are the future of our country are not subjected to this torture and given their rightful place in the society. My dissertation “Strategy to Eradicate Child Labour” and “Effectiveness of National Human Rights Commission of India” was acknowledged as a useful research and the first was published by Berkeley University, USA. It was also published by Indian School for Political Economy, Pune in their scholarly journal on Child Labour. As Additional DG– Investigation in the Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission we conducted several training programs on the subject of protection and promotion of human rights. These initiatives were recognized by State Human Rights Commission. These are some of the issues related to protect human rights that need continued attention from the society.
On my deputation as Coordinator to Government of Mauritius between 2004-2006 under Indian Technological and Economic Co-operation program I had the privilege of training and putting my experience in the field of training to conduct training needs analysis & then implementing training programmes. In our country where police to public ratio is rather disproportionate, community participation with police is a must to ensure better law and order situation. At Nagpur, as Commissioner of Police we mobilized public support by introducing the scheme of Police Mitra and were able to reduce incidents of crime. Accidents and body crimes were controlled to a great extent with the support of local people. The respect for police and appreciation of their work is thereby enhanced since public also gets to understand the nature and challenges of policing. Community policing should be encouraged for the benefit of both the police and citizens.
We often discuss about the prohibitive and difficult conditions in which the police works and so when I took charge as DGP & Managing Director of Maharashtra State Police Housing & Welfare Corporation I ensured that I contribute to their welfare, the best that I could do. Over 100 projects were completed and around 2000 houses for policemen were completed, apart from various other projects during that period.
During the ten months duration at the helm of affairs in the State, we could implement the idea of Police Mitra throughout the State of Maharashtra. In response, today, more than two lakhs people including ladies and gents belonging to all religions, languages are working in core policing in nearby police stations completely voluntarily and doing core policing such as patrolling, nakabandi and traffic duties. To facilitate them, we have launched Police Mitra Maharashtra app which can be easily accessed by visiting App gallery in any android mobile phone & register oneself. It provides access to all police helplines such as women police helpline, child helpline and senior citizens’ helpline. This has empowered common citizen through his mobile. Facility for e complaint about wahanchori & mobilechori (vehicle theft & mobile theft) has also been provided.
My services have got their due recognition and I was conferred Kathin Sewa medal,(Hard area medal), President’s Medal for Meritorious services and President’s Medal for Distinguished Services. And so I can say that my move to the next phase of life is with head held high, contentment of having done my job to the best of my capabilities and served the society. At this juncture, I would like to thank all my senior colleagues, my subordinates and others who influenced my life and work. The unwavering support and the faith reposed in my capabilities made this journey so memorable. I wish them the best.
I have been associated with Protector magazine for a longtime since its inception. The magazine has done a wonderful job as official police magazine of Maharashtra and Mumbai police by highlighting the good work done by them. Cop-Community policing as a mission has been endorsed by the magazine and I highly appreciate that. I had several opportunities through the magazine to voice my thoughts and discuss the achievements of the department which was encouraging and a great support. I wish the best to the magazine, the team of Protector and wish to remain associated in future too! Jai Hind!
Pravin Dixit
