Making the announcement during the inauguration of the newly constructed building of Imphal East district police headquarters at Porompat today, Director General of Police Yumnam Joykumar said official process is underway to acquire two speed boats for deployment at Barak River in the first phase.
Further informing that plans are afoot to press into service speed boats in the upstream of Thoubal Dam for counter insurgency operations, the police chief said six more hovercrafts would purchase to sanitise Loktak Lake of insurgent elements.
Conceding that in the past importance of setting up riverine forces had remained unknown, he said prevailing situation has prompted the police department to seriously note significance of promoting such a force to effectively tackle insurgency problem.
Joykumar also expressed at the time of his taking over charge as the DGP in 2007 there were certain inadequacies in the police organisation which had been gradually addressed to a large extent through the initiative of the Chief Minister.
Listing accommodation of police personnel and their family members as one of the areas that need to be addressed, he confided that to overcome the problem a proposal would be submitted for budgetary allocation under the 14th Finance Commission.
To fully understand accommodation and other basic problems faced by the police personnel feedbacks are being taken from the field officials, he added.
Presenting the welcome address of the inauguration programme, Superintendent of Police (Imphal East) Th Radheshyam recounted that Imphal East district was bifurcated from Imphal district on June 18, 1997.
Pointing out that sanctioned strength of Imphal East district police, including officials, was 151 in the initial period, the SP stated that in all there were five police stations and three outpost in the district compared to the present day strength of 2246 personnel, inconclusive of officials.
Under the new police of the Government, the strength was further increased with the addition of 338 police commandos and 10 posts of village defence force (VDF) in addition to ongoing construction of five police stations, he added. (TheSangaiExpress)