GS Paper 3
Syllabus: Internal Security
Source: TH
Context: India Justice Report 2022 has been recently released. For more on the report: Click here
Major findings:
| Categories | Findings |
| Overall Performer | Telangana police ranked first among States while West Bengal ranked last. |
| Overall Vacancies | Overall police vacancies increased from about 20% to 22% (between 2020 and 2022) |
| Fulfilling Quotas for SC, and ST Communities | Karnataka was the only state to meet its quotas for SC, ST, and Other Backward Classes. |
| Women in the Police Force | No state which had the 33% criteria managed to meet it. |
| It will take another 24 years to have 33% women in police forces across states. | |
| Among large and medium states, Andhra Pradesh was the best performer with nearly 22% of women in police, while Jharkhand was the worst performer with just about 6%. | |
| While women’s representation in the police has been growing in recent years, they made up only about 10% of all police officers in India (2021). |
Issues Faced by Women in Police Forces in India and Steps to address them:
| Issues | Steps to Address Them |
| Gender Discrimination | Conduct gender sensitization programs and training sessions for all police personnel. Implement strict penalties for any discriminatory behaviour towards women. |
| Lack of Representation | Increase the number of women in police recruitment drives. Strictly enforce reservation of women in the police force by state governments. |
| Sexual Harassment | Establish a zero-tolerance policy for sexual harassment. Set up internal complaint committees to investigate and address any cases of harassment. |
| Poor Working Conditions | Provide separate and secure accommodation for women police officers. Ensure the availability of adequate and clean restroom facilities for women. |
| Safety Concerns | Provide self-defence training to women police officers. |
| Lack of Support | Create a support network for women police officers, including counselling services and a grievance redressal mechanism. Provide opportunities for career advancement and professional development for women officers. |
