Kolkata: Winners get ready for night patrol with pistols in hand

KOLKATA: Armed with Glock or 9mm pistols, the all-women Winners unit of Kolkata Police will be deployed for night patrols and night raids now.
The new move comes at a time when the all-women unit crossed 100 recruits, the fresh batch of 34 getting inducted in the force on Wednesday. The event was flagged off by the police commissioner Vineet Kumar Goyal.
The current batch (4th batch) of Winners underwent their induction training from June 1 to July 9 under the Specialized Training Centre (STC) and 34 women constables have successfully completed the training in unarmed combat and non-lethal takedowns, use of small arms, and riding and manoeuvring of two-wheelers without gear. They were also made aware of traffic rules and regulations and they worked on their language communication skills.

“The aggregate of training resulted in them coming out more efficient, more skilled & more tactful in handling sensitive situations,” an officer said. “Earlier, the Winners unit helped us raid clubs and hotels at night. But from now, they will be part of the raids that are meant to stop major crimes. They can choose to use either Glock or 9mm pistols, whichever they are comfortable to use,” said sources.
The all-women Winners team — that was formed on July 11 in 2018 to prevent crime against women in the areas under the jurisdiction of Kolkata Police — has been steadily adding personnel and expanding its field of work. “We now perform regular law and order duties and even we are deployed on the chief minister’s route for security related assignments,” said an officer.
An officer said a Winners team that was deployed on night duty a few weeks ago had combined with the ARS and Bomb Disposal units of detective department and recovered 11 crude bombs from an abandoned area of Beniapukur. Though this was one rare instance when Winners were deployed in an explosives raid, claimed sources, such instances will soon become common.
According to Lalbazar sources, the first batch had merely 27 personnel — two sub-inspectors, one assistant sub-inspector and 24 constables. “Inducted into Kolkata Police following a month’s training, they patrolled the areas such as parks, shopping malls, educational institutions and other vital locations, including night patrols.