KOHIMA— Community-centric policing has boosted the detection and registration of cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and the Nagaland Total Liquor Prohibition (NLTP) Act in the state, said Deputy Chief Minister Y Patton on Monday.
Patton, who is also the in-charge of Home and Border Affairs, said this during the inauguration of new offices of the Commandant, 3rd Nagaland Armed Police (NAP) Battalion, Tuensang, and Superintendent of Police, Zunheboto, at a virtual programme from Police Headquarters (PHQ) Kohima.
The "war on drugs" is showing positive results with 26 cases being registered under the NDPS Act, leading to arrest of about 40 persons and 42 persons under the NLTP Act, he said without specifying the time, and crediting community-centric policing for the significant improvement in case registration, standing at 109 over a period of seven months, which is the highest in 10 years, and 114 cases registered in the last nine months, which is highest in 12 months.
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1]The law and order situation and episode of violence has decreased significantly this year due to proactive policing, which has resulted in removal of two more police stations from the ambit of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), he said.
Offices in pipeline for new districts
Patton said that Nagaland is witnessing various infrastructural developments under the dynamic leadership of Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, which will benefit the citizens of the state.
Five new offices of Superintendent of Police (SP) are in the pipeline for five newly created districts, while two officers mess are coming up at Chumoukedima and Thizama, he said while requesting the contractors to complete the work within the deadline of seven months.
On 3rd NAP Battalion
The deputy chief ministered lauded 3rd NAP Battalion, saying that it was successfully deployed during the inter-state conflict between Assam and Nagaland, popularly known as the Merapani Operation in 1985.
Having earned the monikers "Tiger Battalion" and the “Ferocious 3rd”, the 3rd NAP Battalion has been the vanguard in providing security to the State from external aggression in the last 55 years, he said.
With the inauguration of the new office buildings for the Commandant of 3rd NAP Battalion and SP Zunheboto, he expressed confidence that they would continue to provide public service to with a renewed vigour
He also appealed to all the civil society organisations to continue to extend their support and co-operation in maintaining peace and harmony in the districts.
Patton maintained that, through proactive measures, Zunheboto Police along with co-operation from public broke the nefarious trend of violence in this year’s Nagaland Legislative Assembly (NLA) elections with no loss of lives and property.
He also appealed to the people of Tuensang and Zunheboto districts to co-operate with the law enforcing agencies in order to ensure a better security environment to usher in development.
Pointing out that the main concern of the state forces is to curb criminal acts and crime detection, to prevent drug menace and create a peaceful environment in the society, he urged the civil societies of the districts to extend full support to the District Executive Force (DEF) in the fight against anti-social activities.
While reminding the officers and personnel of the two districts that getting new buildings is not enough, he said what matters most is providing quality service to the people.
Minister for Housing and Mechanical Engineering, P Bashamongba Chang; Advisor of Food and Civil Supplies, Legal Metrology, KT Sukhalu; and Nagaland Director General of Police (DGP) Rupin Sharma also spoke at the event.
Projects cost more than INR 3 crore
According to the technical reports presented by Finson Superintending Engineer, Police Engineering Project (PEP), a total of INR 1, 84, 44, 104 (about INR 1.84 crore) was spent for the SP office in Zunheboto. Executed by M/s H Kughaho Zhimomi, the project commenced in 2020 and completed in 2023.
Regarding the Commandant Office of 3rd NAP Bn Tuensang, an amount of INR 2,22,98,988 (about INR 2.22 crore) was spent. Commenced in 2017 and completed in 2019, the project was executed by M/s T & P Enterprises.
Both the projects have the same plinth area of 3073.10 Sq Ft., it was informed.
The programme was chaired by Renchamo P Kikon, DG Prisons and ADGP.