UDUPI: Staff crunch has hit Udupi police hard. The district has only 68 police personnel for 1 lakh people, though the norms mandate to appoint 200 police personnel for the same population.
At present, 810 policemen are working in 22 police stations in the district, while as many as 118 posts -10 head police constables and 108 police constables- are lying vacant. The department had sent proposals to fill the vacant posts to the state government about three years ago. However, no action has been taken so far. Police stations in Naxalite-affected areas like Amasebail, Shankaranarayana, Kollur, Hebri and Ajekar are the worst hit by the staff shortage, said sources in the department.
Admitting that there is a staff crunch in his department, Udupi SP M B Boralingaiah said that the proposals sent to the government are under process in Bangalore. “Only 40% staff has been allocated official quarters in the district. A proposal on the issue has also been sent,” he added.
At present, three deputy superintendents of police, nine circle police inspectors, 31 police inspectors, 70 police sub-inspectors and assistant sub inspectors, 193 head constables and 504 police constables are working hard to keep the law and order situation in the district. There are 22 police stations including a railway police station and a women police station in Udupi
“It is essential that the staff strength in Udupi town police station, Manipal, Kundapur and Karkala police station is enhanced for efficient policing,” said a senior police officer ,who did not want to be named, adding that there are enough personnel to man the traffic in the district.
