Rijiju bats for modernisation of police forces

Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju on Friday said that the Centre is ready to provide all kind of assistance for modernisation of the country's police forces as he talked about the need for the state governments to allocate required funds for the betterment of forces.

"We believe the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) is an organisation which will help the modernisation of police. It will be very helpful in planning, research, policy etc. We met the senior officers here today. I believe that after 14th Finance commission, the responsibility of modernisation of the police goes to the state governments - to do the funding," Rijiju told ANI.

"I would appeal that the states should at least allocate the minimum required amount; rest, the Centre is always there to help," he added.

According to reports, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, in September said the Union Government would support the States under a new umbrella police modernisation scheme for three years until 2019-20 and Rs 25,060 crore will be allocated for this programme.

The Centre will provide 80 per cent of the financing and the states the rest.

This decision, taken by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), would take forward internal security, law and order, women's safety, modern weapons' procurement, logistics support, hiring of helicopters, upgrade of police wireless, national supply network and e-prison project. It will cover the north-eastern states, Jammu and Kashmir and Left-wing extremism-affected states.