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Journalism of Courage
If there is any police station in Gandhinagar that needs strength in numbers, it is the one in Sector-21. It has under its jurisdiction the Chief Minister8217;s bungalow and the residences of MLAs, besides the much-frequented Akshardham temple, which was attacked by terrorists on September 24, 2002, when two armed terrorists barged into the premises and started firing at devotees, killing 33 and wounding 70.
Yet, this police station faces a severe staff crunch 8212; while the sanctioned strength of the personnel here is 137, the number of cops on duty is only 99, leaving a shortfall of 38.
However, the shortage of resources at Sector-21 police station is not limited to the staff alone. The station has five motorbikes, a Tata Sumo and a mobile patrolling van for conveyance. 8220;The Sumo is reserved for the inspector, whereas the patrolling van is used when we have to move en masse. One of the bikes has been sent for repair, so we have to manage with four. Sometimes we even have to use our personal vehicles,8221; says a police official. 8220;We find it difficult to meet fuel expenses as we get only Rs 100 per month as petrol allowance,8221; he adds. A constable8217;s monthly salary is about Rs 2,750.
The availability 8212; or lack thereof 8212; of space poses an additional problem. Two of the three lockups are stocked with weapons, ammunition and other belonging of the station. In fact, when The Indian Express team visited the station, a woman who was allegedly from Bangladesh and had been arrested for living in India illegally, was being detained in the wireless room.
Of the remaining eight rooms, one is an air-conditioned computer room with seven computers. Only 15 of the cops, however, can operate the machines. 8220;All of us were supposed to get elementary computer training at the SP8217;s office. But when the Ahmedabad serial blasts happened, all except 15 of us were engaged in search-and-comb operations in the area. As a result, they could not attend the training classes,8221; says a policeman.
When it comes to amenities for the staff, there is not much by way of luxury either. There is no recreation room or television set at the station, but most people don8217;t seem to mind too much. 8220;All of us live near the police station, so we go home to rest,8221; says a constable. And while the police inspector has a personal toilet, the one that the rest of the male staff shares is not up to the mark and the facilities for policewomen are barely usable. And this is after the cleanliness drive the station underwent a month ago as part of Chief Minister Narendra Modi8217;s 8216;Nirmal Gujarat8217; project. The only thing that this station appears to be almost 8216;clean8217; out of is police personnel.
In Numbers
Sanctioned strength 137
Number of police personnel 99
Shortfall 38
Number of rooms 11
Number of four-wheelers 2
Number of motorbikes 5
Number of walkie-talkies 5
