Only 10.3% of India's police force is women, a cause of concern: MHA

Representational Image

New Delhi: Even as the Central government has directed police forces across the country to keep the total strength of women personnel at 33 per cent, the current strength is just 10.30 per cent which is 2,15,504 out of the total 20,91,488 police personnel.

"It is a matter of concern", as per the latest "Data on Police Organisations" as on January 1, 2020, released by the Bureau of Police Research & Development (BPR&D).

The BPR&D had flagged that the existing woman police population ratio is still very low.

"Poor representation of women in police is posing serious challenges in dealing with crimes against women and woman criminals. Therefore, it is essential that woman police personnel are visible at the cutting edge level," the report stated.

The information was provided to the Lok Sabha by Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai, on August 10.

Further, the total sanctioned police force for all states and union territories, including armed police, is 26,23,225 out of which vacant 5,31,737 posts are still vacant.

Talking about the less number of women police personnel in the police forces, a senior Home Ministry official stated that `police` is a state subject falling in List-II (State List) of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India and it is primarily the responsibility of the state governments to recruit more women police personnel including improvement of gender balance.

He said that "time to time", the Centre has issued advisories to the states for increasing number of women personnel in the police forces.

All the state governments have been requested to create additional posts of women constables, sub-inspectors by converting the vacant posts of male constables.

The aim is that each police station should have at least three women sub-inspectors and 10 women police constables, so that a women`s help desk is manned round the clock.

States have also been advised to strengthen welfare measures for women police personnel and ensure their safety and a conducive work environment such as provision of housing and medical facilities and restroom facilities for women police personnel in police stations to attract women to the Police Force, the Home Ministry officials said.

Commenting on the low number of the Police personnel in the country, former DGP of Jammu and Kashmir Ashok Prasad said that the State governments are not recruiting the police personnel despite the huge numbers of vacancies due to fund crunch.

"Barring the police stations in the metro or big cities, you will not find separate restroom facilities for the women police personnel in small towns or in rural police stations and sometimes, it also works as a deterrent for women who want to join the police force, he added.