The milestones in the Home department since Pinarayi Vijayan was sworn in the chief minister of Kerala.
1. Law and order on the mend
The Left Democratic Front brought in measures to strengthen law and order as soon as it came to office in May 2016. Strong measures were adopted to make investigation more scientific and to prevent third-degree torture and to keep corruption at bay. High-level meetings and video conferences were convened in the presence of the chief minister.
The police force underwent an overhaul in the last one year. The chief minister attended meetings in every police range and issued orders to make crime investigation and the maintenance of law and order more effective. Special squads were formed across the state to suppress goons and other criminals.
A special drive led by district superintendents of police was organized between February 19 and 25 to target goons, anti-social elements and people accused of serious offenses. As many as 8,339 people were arrested during the period. Cases were registered against 1,063 persons under section 107 of the CrPC. Four persons were arrested under section 109 of the CrPC and 59 people under section 110 of the CrPC. The state is free of serious challenges to law and order.
2. Advances in crime investigation
The police force was also able to advance in crime investigation by proving several sensational cases using scientific methods.
A special investigation team was formed to probe the murder of Jisha. The team used scientific methods to nab the accused. A charge-sheet has been filed.
The cyber police nabbed a group of online scamsters from Delhi for fraud committed in Kerala.
The police arrested the persons who robbed a jeweler's employee of gold worth Rs 93 lakh at Kuriachira at Nedupuzha in July. The accused included a Maharashtra native.
The police arrested the suspects in a tough case in which one Mariadas was killed in Kovalam. The suspects were arrested from Tamil Nadu within a week of the murder and the loot was recovered.
Police arrested the killer of a woman who went missing from Chithali near Palakkad. The accused was nabbed two weeks after he killed Preethi near Pollachi after robbing her of her gold ornaments.
Arrested a man who took a woman from Thrissur east to Ramanathapuram in Tamil Nadu and poisoned her.
Arrested a man who killed a pregnant woman named Aswathi and dumped her body in a rubber estate near Ettumanoor in Kottayam. He was nabbed within five days of the murder.
A man was arrested in Kochi for killing his employee and hacking the body into pieces before dumping it in a well.
The police took stern measures to prevent terrorism-related activities. Two persons have been arrested from Mumbai in connection with recruitment to the Islamic State terror group. Further investigation followed.
The Kerala Police could also prove scientifically several hi-tech ATM robberies. A Romanian national was arrested from Mumbai after he led a gang which looted ATMs by installing a camera and a magnetic data receiver inside an SBI ATM in Thiruvananthapuram. Another accused was nabbed from Kenya by the Interpol on a request by the Kerala police.
A man in Thiruvananthapuram was held within three days of the murder of his parents and two others.
The killers of a madrasa teacher were nabbed in Kasaragod.
An Uttar Pradesh native was held for the thefts at the Union Bank ATM at Thrikkakkara and a Syndicate Bank ATM at Kambivelikkakam. He was also found to have murdered an associate from Uttar Pradesh.
The police could bring to justice all the suspects in all cases of harassment of women, including the recent attack on an actress at Angamaly.
3. Strong measures to ensure women's safety
The government had women's safety in mind whenever it introduced changes in the police force.
The government introduced Pink Patrol in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Kozhikode and Kannur towns to ensure women's safety. Thiruvananthapuram also gets a Pink beat. The new wings will complement the works of the local police patrol, highway patrol and shadow police teams. The pink patrol is an all-woman crew including the driver. The patrol vehicles employ software that can track a distress call using GPS and GIS. Women can call 1515 for help and for information.
A pink control room that functions under the respective district police chief will pass on the distress calls to the Pink Patrol vehicles. The vehicles are equipped with facilities to deal with any emergency situation.
The pink beat is Kerala government's plan to ensure the safety of women and children in public places. The project is being implemented in other districts as well.
The pink patrol team will monitor public places as well as schools, colleges, offices, ladies hostels and places of worship. The crew will support the officers on pink beat at various points. The officers will do anything possible to keep a tab on stalkers and drug peddlers.
Women's help desks have been formed in all police stations for women to walk in confidently with any complaints. Every district has a 24/7 women's helpline - 1091 - and another number - 181 - which the Social Justice Department runs with police and other agencies, apart from the pink patrol number.
A state-level women's cell under a superintendent of police and district-level women's cells under women circle inspectors are also functioning. The government is also launching a program in which a woman police officer is expected to visit a panchayat every week to collect complaints of atrocities against women.
The government is organizing self-defense classes for women. The Kerala police have put in place a program to equip women to sense any potential threat and to give them the training to overcome such situations. Training centers have been put up in every district to boost the confidence of women and sense of security. The program is being expanded to more local levels by the Jana Maithri police with participation from Kudumbasree, residents' associations, colleges and voluntary associations. More than a lakh women have been trained under the scheme this year.
Three mobile counseling centers have been started for women. Safe modes of transports such as She Taxi, She Auto and Pink Auto are available in all districts, especially in cities. Student police cadet program and Jana Maithri programs are also used to ensure women's safety.
4. Women in charge
Women sub inspectors have been appointed as station house officers in six police stations ñ Eroor, Thannithode, Thrissur Town West, Varantharappally, Chemmangad and Payyavoor ñ a first in state.
5. Jana Maithri in all police stations
The Jana Maithri program has been expanded from 267 police stations to all police stations in Kerala. Training and other programs to strengthen the project are on the way.
6. New vacancies, units and training
A new battalion has been approved for women cops. As many as 451 vacancies have been created for this. As many as 400 vacancies for drivers have also been created. The police are set to start commando units in each of the seven armed police battalions. As many as 210 vacancies have been created for this. As many as 1,598 trainee officers and 60 sub inspectors have finished their training and joined the force. Circle inspectors will be appointed as station house officers.
7. Modernization gets priority
The government has given administrative approval for Rs 30 crore to modernize the police force in the budget. The modernization projects have been put on the fast track. All police officers have been given CUG SIM. Kerala Police's website and control rooms in small towns have been revamped. The government has put in place an array of measures to make crime investigation and the maintenance of law and order more technology-driven. The Kerala police cyber dome set up in the Technopark Thiruvananthapuram has been made more effective by introducing a system to monitor economic offenses. Specialized training in cyber forensics was imparted to 100 persons after a gap of many years. Personnel who man cyber police stations have been given high-end training. As many as 100 police stations have been transformed into smart police stations. A modern photo archive system was introduced to store police photos. Modern interrogation rooms were set up. Mobile forensic units have been set up in all 19 police districts. Training facilities have been introduced in the Thrissur police academy and the police training college. Novel projects like Khaki Hats have been put in place to prevent cyber crimes and to trace their origins. Public relations officers have been appointed to all police stations to make them more people-friendly.
8. Mobile app
A mobile phone app was launched to help the public avail of the services offered by the police and to communicate with the police.
9. Seven new police stations
Seven new police stations were allotted in Achankovil, Kaypamangalam, Koppam, Thondarnad (Wayanad), Nagaroor (Chirayinkeezhu), Pinarayi (Kannur) and Puthoor (Palakkad). Police stations will soon be set up in these places. Eight more coastal police stations are also in the offing.
10. SOFT for traffic safety
The Save Our Fellow Traveler (SOFT) project aims to provide immediate medical care for accident victims. A 50-member SOFT volunteer group will be formed under each circle inspector in the state. The training of the volunteers is on. The plan also includes more effective monitoring for traffic regulation.
11. Students police
The students police project has been expanded to 48 more schools. An action plan has been put in place to improve the project.
12. Fighting drugs
The police, excise, railway police and the railways have joined forces to prevent the smuggling of narcotics and illegal drugs. The anti-narcotics squad in Kerala has been strengthened under a deputy inspector general. The police have intensified a drive to enforce provisions in the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COPTA) that calls for large pictorial warnings on the cover of tobacco products and to prevent the sale of intoxicating substances to minors.
