About 50 policemen are pumping iron for the Mr Nalanda contest, a first-time experience. And police stations here are competing against each other to be rated the best for their behaviour with the public, crime rate and the upkeep of the premises. All this to escape from being prisoners of their own image.Even a policeman can win friends, make life easier for themselves and the public as the policing experience in Nalanda district proves. The district has been marked as one among the six reference points nationwide for good policing, by the Union Home Ministry’s Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD).In a state where the criminal-politician-police nexus no longer makes news, IPS officer Amit Lodha of the 1998 batch went by his own instincts. Fresh from IIT Delhi, he ignored friendly advice about how Bihar works. After two years of his first posting as District SP, change is tangible in highly-sensitive Nalanda. For one, women don’t fear entering the district police HQ at Biharsharif; more than a dozen poor women are being given vocational training by women police personnel here. Elsewhere, a few dozen slum children are being taught in seven police stations. In a remarkable change, the public now believe the police are there not merely to make life difficult for them. ‘‘We now feel the police will do all that they can to solve a crime,’’ says Sadhu Sharan Singh, chief of Arpa village in Hilsa. As public confidence increased, even the crime rate dropped — no communal tension at all and kidnappings are rare. ‘‘I get to watch a one-day match, from the beginning to end,’’ says Lodha.It is the combination of motivating men and earning public confidence that improved policing in Nalanda. For instance, besides the usual picket at religious celebrations such as Id and Dussehra, now there is also a medical booth run by police. In an accident, the police ambulance reaches first. The SP himself picks up the phone, making access easy for all. The databank on criminals is computerised and all police stations have an album with photographs of the criminals for the complainant to identify.On the other hand, policemen feel they are taken care of. There are cultural events and community feasts where families get together; a Rs 3 lakh-corpus fund by collecting Rs 10 monthly each from all personnel takes care of their medical expenses. Remote stations that don’t have power supply will now be given a solar unit. ‘‘We have freedom from boredom and stress,’’ says Biharsharif SHO A.K. Tiwari. ‘‘We don’t threaten or abuse our men. Instead, we motivate and encourage them,’’says Lodha.Exceptional work gets on-the-spot cash reward. There is even a magazine for police, and Rapid Action Force has been withdrawn from here altogether. Lodha says the district police is now making better use of funds and gets sponsorships from PSUs. It is not that everything is perfect here. But in Bihar, even small things make a difference. Though Lodha vouches political interference is rare, many enthusiasts before him have been tamed by the system, by coercion or by co-option. But as of now, it’s a new experience for police and the public alike in Nalanda district.
