Debate is intensifying over the weak quality of the police force in India, accentuated by the recent incident of sexual assault and the subsequent death of a paramedic student in Delhi. On national television, busy news anchors have engaged politicians, social and civil activists, lawyers, students, women’s associations and former police officers to articulate the deterrence of these crimes and strengthen law and order.
Yet what ails the police in India? Is it necessary to examine the structure of the police? Has anyone debated beyond increasing the number of police and opening new police stations? Do we prioritize standard operating procedures to allow better crime tracking? Is there a single consolidated and shared criminal database available to all police stations in large and medium-sized urban centers?
To start with, we need to evaluate the main tasks of the police in India as detailed below for easy understanding:
• crime prevention
• investigation and detection
• intelligence check
• security for VIP
• patrolling border areas and railroads
• monitor and prevent smuggling and drug trafficking
In addition to the above, the police act in support of intelligence agencies such as the Investigation and Analysis Wing (RAW), the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and the Criminal Investigation Department ( CID), etc. to defend law and order.
Now we need to take a quick look at the sub-tasks listed below:
• investigate economic crimes
• monitor and heal incidents of domestic violence
• advise and resolve social conflicts
• monitor traffic solutions
• support for disaster management and recovery systems
• monitor reporting systems
• execute personnel management (permits, per diem, etc.)
• currency and implement a rights allocation system
• protect environmental laws
• manage facilities
• support information technology systems
• update notice boards
• documentation of reports and inquiries
• collection of fines and issuance of challans / receipts
The proportion of complementary tasks has increased significantly in the last decade for the police in India. The lack of standard operating procedures with the help of manual and repetitive tasks has led to a blemish on the efficiency and effectiveness of surveillance. As a result, police officers are highly stressed and show low levels of participation according to media reports.
For starters, Shared Service Centers could be leveraged in the following areas of work:
• Facilities management
• Data services
• Information Technology (IT)
• Administration
• Traffic systems
• Recovery and disaster management
The first step is to enter into meaningful discussions with government agencies, legal associations, constitutional experts, and police chiefs. The second step would be to define a viable operating model for centers (voice, chat, email, SMS) that includes return on investment. The third step will lead to the formation of a team of professionals to establish the shared services center. A proof of concept focused on the selected work area within an identified city and locality constitutes the fourth step. The fifth step is to implement appropriate change management within the police force and citizens. The last step would involve evaluating the measures of success defined in the proof of concept.
There are potential benefits both hard and soft that can be increased after shared services centers recover and the likely evidence is outlined below:
• standardize processes to minimize variations and reduce complexity
• reduce operating costs
• improve the quality of existing services
• allow alternative career opportunities for the police workforce
• preserve bandwidth to focus on core tasks
• Take advantage of economies of scale with a shared online consolidated database, intelligent IT platforms, and support easy recovery
• create alternative channels for citizens to register complaints
• establish a cycle time to register, track and close complaints
• enable better intelligence by extracting data on criminals
• strengthen the hiring process
• increase workforce engagement levels
To support the above, there are some experiments that are emerging within India and globally. The Central Zone Police (http://www.hyderabadlakepolice.com) at the Ramgopalpet Police Station in Hyderabad has outsourced some non-essential police functions to overcome the pressure of maintaining law and order, VIP security, detecting crime and labor shortages. Post a detailed review and approval by the Police Commissioner (Sri MV Krishna Rao), Hyderabad, the same is now being extended to other police stations in the city. The first wave of benefits includes the reduction of operating costs and the participation of the civilian population in police activity.
The goal of the Shared Business Services Center (SBSC) in Surrey (http://www.surrey.police.uk) is to provide a customer-centric front-line support service for Human Resources, Information Technology and Communication (TIC) and Finance in response to customer inquiries from across the Force. SBSC also promotes best practices and the use of technology and information sources to improve processes across the Force.
Another example is the Cleveland Police decision to establish a Shared Services Center with the help of Steria that encompasses finance, human resources, procurement, fleet, facilities, and various administrative functions. The Northamptonshire and Cheshire police are connecting their administrative systems, although they are located some distance from each other. This partnership, known as Multi-Force Shared Service, has already established shared finance and purchasing services and updated technology to support finance and purchasing, as well as property and logistics transactions.
The Shared Services Center can further strengthen the key objectives of the Crime and Crime Tracking Systems and Networks (CCTNS) project of the Ministry of the Interior of the Government of India. Some of the key goals include:
• provide improved tools for investigation, crime prevention, law and order, traffic management and emergency response
• use information technology for the efficiency and effectiveness of basic police operations
• provide information for easier and faster analysis
• increase operational efficiency by reducing monotonous and repetitive tasks
• Automate administrative functions and thus free up police personnel to focus more on basic policing functions.
• create platforms at the state and central level to share information and databases on crime and crime
• resulting in better tracking of offenders, suspects, accused and repeat offenders
Now pause and reflect that if the carpenter (who was first robbed by the culprits prior to the sexual assault) alerted a shared services center via a helpline, the message could have been instantly relayed across the board. police stations and maybe on cell phones. That could have prevented the bloody tragedy. Therefore, it is time to walk the path of shared service centers and enable a safe environment for our citizens.