CM tells police force to rise above criticism

Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Thursday asked police personnel to continue their excellent service to people unmindful of criticism.

At the passing-out parade of 29 Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP), 17 of them men and 12 women, he said they were functioning efficiently amid challenges, finding it difficult to spend quality time with their families.

“Sometimes, the actions of a few leads to criticism. Ignore them and continue your public service,” he said. He asked the public to appreciate the good work of the police and encourage them with their cooperation.

Medals presented

The event saw the presentation of President of India, Union Home Minister and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister medals to 201 police, DVAC, prison, home guard and civil defence personnel in the State. The recipients included A.K. Viswanathan, Chennai City Police Commissioner. He won the President’s police medal for Distinguished Service award on the occasion of Independence Day 2017.

The Chief Minister said that thanks to effective policing, the State has been recognised by the National Crime Records Bureau as one of the safest places to live for women. “Chennai has been graded as the safest metro city for women and Coimbatore as the safest corporation,” he said.

Pointing to vacant posts in the department, he said the government was taking steps to fill in 1,480 vacancies in the sub-inspector cadre and to recruit 5,538 constables. Over the last seven years, 24,023 police personnel, 1,034 sub-inspectors and 99 DySPs have been recruited.

DGP’s sword

E. Satish Kumar received the DGP’s sword for best overall trainee. Son of Elayapan and Sellam, he hails from a family of farmers and has completed his B.E.in Mechanical Engineering. “I was motivated to join the police by my friend’s father who is in the force,” he said.

He won gold medals for the law paper and overall performance, and silver for outdoor parade. “I would like to specialise in [fighting] cybercrime,” he said.