National Seminar on Professional Policing
The British Council in collaboration with the National Human Rights Commission organized a National Seminar on ‘Professional Policing’ at the British Council on 16 March 2002. The seminar was inaugurated by Justice J.S. Verma, Chairperson, NHRC. The seminar focused on two projects:
Human Rights Investigation and Interviewing Skills Project (All India).
Human Rights and Custody Management (Piloted in 5 States – Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana).
The projects demonstrated training interventions that promoted good practices in policing, which making the police personnel more professional and competent. The projects had been supported by the British High Commission and UK Government funding (Human Rights Project Fund).
In the last few years, more than 60 per cent of complaints received by the National Human Rights Commission have related to rights violations by the police. Since 1999, the NHRC and the British Council have collaborated on two projects involving the training of police personnel. Both projects have used the approach of training by a group of Lead Trainers, who have developed and delivered a participatory programme, on the two themes that were presented during this seminar.
More than 1200 police personnel from the ranks of Assistant Sub-Inspectors to Superintendents of Police have participated. They have, in their feedback, commended the excellence of the content, methodology and impact of the training, both in terms of their own understanding of human rights and the application of the training to improve the work of policing.
Speaking on the occasion, Justice Verma said, “Police personnel should know their role in upholding human rights for which their training across the board is necessary”. He added that the Judiciary could work only after the police have done its job properly. The police force should appreciate that, with the powers invested in it, there were responsibilities it had to assume. Concerned at the number of unnecessary arrests made by police, he said, “it results in people spending a lot of time in custody, which is absolutely unwarranted”.
Human Rights Investigation and Interviewing Skills Project (All India).
Human Rights and Custody Management (Piloted in 5 States – Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana).
The projects demonstrated training interventions that promoted good practices in policing, which making the police personnel more professional and competent. The projects had been supported by the British High Commission and UK Government funding (Human Rights Project Fund).
In the last few years, more than 60 per cent of complaints received by the National Human Rights Commission have related to rights violations by the police. Since 1999, the NHRC and the British Council have collaborated on two projects involving the training of police personnel. Both projects have used the approach of training by a group of Lead Trainers, who have developed and delivered a participatory programme, on the two themes that were presented during this seminar.
More than 1200 police personnel from the ranks of Assistant Sub-Inspectors to Superintendents of Police have participated. They have, in their feedback, commended the excellence of the content, methodology and impact of the training, both in terms of their own understanding of human rights and the application of the training to improve the work of policing.
Speaking on the occasion, Justice Verma said, “Police personnel should know their role in upholding human rights for which their training across the board is necessary”. He added that the Judiciary could work only after the police have done its job properly. The police force should appreciate that, with the powers invested in it, there were responsibilities it had to assume. Concerned at the number of unnecessary arrests made by police, he said, “it results in people spending a lot of time in custody, which is absolutely unwarranted”.