West Bengal Police

West Bengal Police
পশ্চিমবঙ্গ পুলিশ
Abbreviation WBP
Agency overview
Employees Superintendents of Police:
Additional superintendents of police:
Deputy Superintendents of Police:
Inspectors of Police:
Sub-Inspectors of Police:
Assistant sub-inspectors of police etc
Legal personality Governmental: Government agency
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdiction* State of West Bengal, India
Governing body Government of West Bengal
General nature
Operational structure
Headquarters Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Agency executive Shri Surajit Kar Purkayastha, Director General of Police and Inspector General of Police
Child agency Barrackpore Police Commissionerate
Asansol–Durgapur Police Commissionerate
Howrah Police Commissionerate
Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate
Siliguri Police Commissionerate
Website
policewb.gov.in
Footnotes
* Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction.

The West Bengal Police is one of the two police forces of the Indian state of West Bengal. (The other is the Kolkata Police, which has a separate jurisdiction.)

The West Bengal Police was reorganized under provisions of the Police Act 1861 during the British Raj. It is headed by an officer designated as the Director General of Police who reports to the State Government through the Home (Police) Department. Shri GM Prabhu Rajasekhar Reddy, an IPS officer of 1982 batch is the DG & IGP of West Bengal Police since October 1, 2013.

The West Bengal Police has jurisdiction concurrent with the eighteen revenue districts of the State (excluding the metropolitan city of Kolkata) which comprises one of the two general police districts of West Bengal as under the Police Act 1861. The other general police district consists of the major portions of the metropolitan area of Kolkata, and has a separate police force (Kolkata Police) constituted and administered under the Calcutta Police Act 1866 & Calcutta (Suburban Police) Act 1866. This arrangement, unique in India, was conceived during colonial times when Calcutta was the capital of British India. The city police have been kept independent of the state police force.

Structure

Zones

The police administration in the state is divided into three police zones and a Government Railway Police (GRP) Zone, each headed by an Inspector General of Police. Each Zone consists of one or more Ranges headed by an officer designated as the Deputy Inspector General of Police (or Special Inspector General of Police). In all, there are 22 police districts (including four consisting of Government Railway Police districts), each headed by a Superintendent of Police. The three Zones are South Bengal, Western Bengal and North Bengal, and an office of the IGP railways.training college.

Ranges

West Bengal Police has seven Police Ranges and a Railways Range. South Bengal Zone has two Ranges: Presidency Range, consisting of the districts of South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas and Howrah and Murshidabad Range, consisting of the districts of Nadia and Murshidabad. Western Zone also has two Ranges: Burdwan Range, consisting of Hooghly, Burdwan and Birbhum districts and Midnapore Range, consisting of Paschim Midnapur, Purba Midnapur, Bankura and Purulia Districts. North Bengal Zone has three Ranges: Jalpaiguri Range, consisting of the districts of Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar and Cooch Behar; Darjeeling Range, consisting of Darjeeling and Uttar Dinajpur and Malda Range, consisting of the districts of Malda and Dakshin Dinajpur. Headquarters of Burdwan Police Range is Chuchura, Hooghly.

Police ranks

The West Bengal Police maintains the following ranks:

Districts

Each Police District is either coterminous with the Revenue district or in the case of Government Railway Police districts, is located within a number of revenue districts. It is headed by a District Superintendent of Police (or simply called Superintendent of Police). Each district comprises two or more Sub-Divisions, several Circles and Police Stations.

Sub-Divisions

Each Sub-Division is headed by one Police officer of the rank Deputy Superintendent of Police (members of West Bengal Police Service, a directly recruited officer or one promoted from the ranks) or an Additional Superintendent of Police (members of Indian Police Service).

The officer who heads a Sub-Division is known as SDPO i.e. Sub Divisional Police Officer. suv divisional officer is the head of the sub division

Circles

A Circle comprises several Police Stations. An Inspector of Police who heads a police circle is the Circle Inspector of Police or CI.

Stations

A Police Station is headed by either a Sub-Inspector (lower subordinate rank) or an Inspector (an upper subordinate rank).Police outposts are headed by an Sub-Inspector or Assistant Sub Inspector.After the year 2009 both ASI and SI have equal investigation power and both serve as duty officers. A Police Station is the basic unit of policing, responsible for prevention and detection of crime, maintenance of public order, enforcing law in general as well as for performing protection duties and making security arrangements for the constitutional authorities, government functionaries, representatives of the public in different legislative bodies and local self governments, public figures etc.

Commissionerate

A police commissionerate is a law enforcement body especially in the urban parts of the state. The commissionerate is headed by a Commissioner of Police. There are five commissionerates under West Bengal police, at Howrah, Bidhanagar, Barrackpore, Asansol-Durgapur and the Siliguri Police Commissionerate. The Howrah,Asansol — Durgapur & the Siliguri Police commissionerates are headed by Commissioner of Police(CP) who are of the rank of Deputy Inspector General of Police(DIG) while the Bidhanagar, Barrackpore police commissionerates are headed by Commissioner of Police of the rank of Inspector General of Police(IGP).

Organisation

The WBP are divided into a number of units: the Armed Battalions consisting of State Armed Police (SAP), Eastern Frontier Rifles (EFR) and India Reserve Battalions (IRBs), Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Counter Insurgency Force [CIF], Enforcement Branch (EB), Intelligence Branch (IB), Traffic Branch, Police Telecommunications, Training Wing, State Crime Records Bureau (SCRB)& Police Computer Centre (PCC). An elite force named "STRACO" has been created to combat insurgency & terrorism, posted in West Zone to fight Maoist guerrillas. WBP is raising another new "Counter Insurgency" force on the line of Gray Hound Special Force of Andhra Pradesh Police. The Police Manual of West Bengal Police was compiled and issued during British Raj and is known as the Police Regulations of Bengal(PRB), 1943 and with subsequent modifications and corrections, is the guiding source of internal Police Organization and Administration under its area of responsibility.

Recruitments

Entries are done at the following ranks:
1. Constables / Lady constables: Appointing by Police Service Commission from 2010 .
2. Sub Inspectors: Appointment done through West Bengal Publice Service Commission.
3. West Bengal Police Service: Officers selected through West Bengal Civil Service (Exe) etc. Examination conducted by West Bengal Publice Service Commission are appointed as Deputy Superintendents of Police.
4. Indian Police Service: Officers selected through Civil Service Examination conducted by Union Publice Service Commission are appointed as additional Superintendents of Police.

Eastern Frontier Rifles

The Eastern Frontier Rifles are an armed police force of the WBP, the purpose of which is to control major law & order problems, communal riots and terrorist attacks. Many contingents of EFR are kept deployed in various disturbed areas of the State. However, in recent years the effectiveness of this force has been weakened by overuse and prolonged deployment at Police Stations for day-to-day law & order duties. The headquarters of EFR is at Salua, near Kharagpur.

Counter Insurgency Force

The specialised force of the CIF was raised by the Government following the worsening situation in the jungle mahal. The force was charged with the specific task of curbing presence of the maoists within the state. The force was allowed its own recruiting process so as to select the best men from within the force. The importance of this organization can be judged by the fact that it is headed by an Additional DGP. Mr. Kundan Lal Tamta,IPS is presently the current head of this specialised force.

Ranks

The Director General functions from the West Bengal Police Directorate, located in the Writers' Buildings, the State Government's main Secretariat in Central Kolkata. He is assisted by a team of senior officers from the ranks of Additional DG & IG of Police to Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG — a post equivalent in rank and status to the Superintendent of Police). Officers of the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police are selected by the West Bengal Public Service Commission through the West Bengal Service Civil Service (Executive & other services) Exams. In addition to this, the direct Sub Inspectors of Police may also become Deputy Superintendent of Police on promotion,D.C, after successful completion of their tenure as Inspectors of Police.

Insignia of West Bengal Police (State Police)

Indian State Police Gazetted Officer Rank Insignia
Insignia
Rank Deputy Commissioner of Police or Senior Superintendent of Police Deputy Commissioner of Police or Superintendent of Police Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police or Additional Superintendent of Police Assistant Commissioner of Police or Deputy Superintendent of Police
Abbreviation DCP or SSP DCP or SP ADL.DCP or ASP ACP or DSP
  • Note: Gazetted officers belonging to Indian State Police Service(s) lie between ranks ACP/DSP and DCP/SSP.
    • To gain promotion to ADL.CP/DIG rank, officers undergo training and hence are awarded IPS.
Indian State Police Non-Gazetted Officer Rank Insignia
Insignia No Insignia¹
Rank Inspector of Police Assistant Inspector of Police2 Sub-Inspector of Police Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police Police Head Constable3 Senior Police Constable3 Police Constable
Abbreviation INS API SI ASI HPC SPC PC
  • ¹ Police Constable has no insignia except the khaki uniform.
  • 2This rank only exists in Maharashtra and Mumbai Police Service[1][2]
  • 3Shoulder insignia for this rank is used by Maharashtra and Mumbai Police Service[1][2]
  • Note: Colour pattern and size of chevron may vary according to the different rules of several distinct Indian State Police Services.

Equipment

References

  1. 1 2 "Maharashtra Police" (PDF).
  2. 1 2 "Mumbai Police".
  3. ↑ The Times of India (6 August 2016). "Excalibur muscle for Bengal police". timesofindia.com. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
  4. ↑ NYOOOZ (6 August 2016). "Excalibur muscle for Bengal police". nyoooz.com. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "WEST BENGAL POLICE GAZETTE" (PDF). www.policewb.gov.in. West Bengal Police Authority. 3 September 2014. Retrieved 28 May 2016.
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