Raipur: Chhattisgarh Police have launched a special campaign to check mental stress and depression among their personnel by conducting interactive programmes and arranging counselling sessions, music and yoga therapies for them, a government official said.
The move comes after the state reported over 50 cases of suicide by police personnel, and a number of incidents of policemen attacking their colleagues in the last two years.
During a meeting with senior police officials and psychologists on Tuesday, state Director General of Police (DGP) D M Awasthi chalked out an action plan for the special campaign, titled ‘Spandan’, and ordered it to be immediately launched in all districts, the official said.
A mobile application is also being prepared for monitoring the problems of police personnel and it will be launched within next 15 days, he said.
On May 31, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel expressed concern over incidents of suicide and fratricide taking place in police camps due to depression/stress among security personnel, and directed Awasthi to come up with a stress- buster plan soon.
As part of the campaign ‘Spandan’, senior police officers will visit police lines, police stations and armed forces companies to interact with the personnel to know about problems being faced by them, the official said.
Even all commandants will have to stay at night in the camp of each company of their respective forces once in a month, he said.
The DGP will conduct a special interactive programme twice a month at the police headquarters in Raipur to personally meet officers and employees of the district police force and other armed forces.
Arrangements will also be made for counselling by psychologists, music therapy, yoga education, sports and library in camps located in inaccessible areas, including those in the Maoist-hit belt, the official said.
Senior officers, including DGP, will visit remote areas and hold discussions with the personnel deployed there.
Detailed guidelines have been issued to all district superintendents of police and commandants of battalions about the campaign, the official said.
A number of incidents of suicide and fratricide have been reported in police camps in the past couple of years.
On May 29 this year, an assistant platoon commander of the Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) opened fire from his rifle at his colleagues, killing two personnel and injuring another, at their camp in Narayanpur district.
In a case of fratricide in December last year, six Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel were killed at the camp of its 45th battalion in Narayanpur.
Besides, two CAF jawans were killed in a similar incident at their camp in Bijapur district in June last year, according to police.
In February this year, the Chhattisgarh government informed in the Assembly that nearly 50 police personnel, including those from paramilitary forces, committed suicide in the state in last two years.