Punjab police includes community in its drive against drugs

Punjab police has decided to involve village masses in its drive against drugs and other problems like women's safety and has set a committee of locals at 'Saanjh Kendras' in this regard.
The advisory committees of local people including NGOs, intellectuals, social workers, professionals at every 'Saanjh Kendra' operational in every police station of the state to make it a peoples' movement, an official spokesperson said.
The committees would also focus on critical issues like women safety, traffic and presence of stray animals on roads to work out solutions at local level, he said said here today.
Project named 'Saanjh' was started in 2010 in Punjab which has extended the concept of Community Policing Centre up to Sub-division and Police Station level.

DGP (Community Policing) S K Sharma stressed the need for greater engagement with the community.
He said that a recent step in this direction was taken by constituting Saanjh Advisory Boards through which more than 35,000 people have joined the Saanjh Kendras.

"A training module for members of Saanjh Committees and Saanjh Advisory Boards will be prepared soon to enable them to mobilise and involve more people with the Saanjh initiatives," he said.
Emphasising the role of Saanjh Kendras as centres providing time-bound and dignified access to police services, as a forum for dispute redressal and as a platform for police- community partnership, Sharma said over 40 lakh services have been delivered through the Saanjh Kendras and over 27,000 disputes resolved through the participation of members of community.

Sharma underlined the need to address the common concerns including traffic, safety of women, problem of drug abuse and presence of stray animals on roads through inter-departmental co-ordination.