Raipur: Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired the annual conference of DGPs and IGPs on Saturday and witnessed extensive deliberations on different aspects of India’s security system, a statement issued by the government said.
Modi described the conference of police chiefs as “a great forum to share best practices and innovations in this field”.
The 60th edition of the closed-door, off-camera huddle of directors general of police (DGPs) and inspectors general of police (IGPs) from across the country at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in Chhattisgarh’s Raipur was inaugurated by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday.
Modi, who arrived here on Friday night, joined the deliberations on Saturday.
The conference was also attended by National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval, Intelligence Bureau (IB) chief Tapan Kumar Deka and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Director Praveen Sood, among other police chiefs from central and state forces.
In a post on X, the prime minister said: “The first day of the DGP/IGP Conference in Raipur witnessed extensive deliberations on different aspects of India’s security system. This is a great forum to share best practices and innovations in this field.”
Inaugurating the three-day conference, Shah said on Friday that the Modi government has given “permanent solutions” to the problems of Naxalism, the northeast and Jammu and Kashmir, and the number of Naxal-affected districts in the country has reduced sharply.
He asked the police chiefs to go for a 360-degree fight against narcotics and organised crime, emphasised intelligence accuracy and inter-agency synergy, and highlighted the use of new criminal laws to modernise policing nationwide.
The home minister said the time has come for state police forces to work together with the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), strike hard at narcotics gangs operating at the state, national and international levels, and put their masterminds behind bars.
The important meeting comes within weeks of agencies busting a “white-collar” terror module that was behind a car blast near Delhi’s Red Fort that claimed 15 lives on November 10.
The conference, which will conclude on Sunday with the prime minister’s address, aims to review the progress made in addressing key policing challenges so far and outline a forward-looking roadmap for building a “Surakshit Bharat”, in alignment with the national vision of “Viksit Bharat”, according to an official statement.
The conference of DGPs and IGPs has emerged as a key forum for resolving the country’s internal security challenges — ranging from identifying problems and challenges to formulating strategies and policies.
Held under the overarching theme of “Viksit Bharat: Security Dimensions”, the conference this year will see detailed deliberations on key security issues, including left-wing extremism, counter-terrorism, disaster management, women’s safety and the use of forensic science and artificial intelligence (AI) in policing, the statement said.
The conference, which is expected to see the participation of around 600 officers, provides a platform for senior police officers to freely discuss and debate diverse national security-related issues as well as various operational, infrastructural and welfare-related problems faced by security personnel.
This time, to incorporate new and younger perspectives, the heads of the home departments of states and Union territories as well as several officers at the DIG (deputy inspector general) and SP (superintendent of police) levels will also participate in person.
The annual conference, which culminates in extensive deliberations involving police and intelligence officers from the district, state and national levels on identified themes, produces tangible action points and reviews the progress on issues identified in previous editions, which are presented to the prime minister.
Best practices from states and Union territories are presented during the conference, enabling the states to learn from one another.
The free-flowing discussions allow senior police officers to share their views and recommendations on key policing and internal-security issues affecting the country directly with the prime minister.
Till 2013, the annual meet was held in New Delhi. The following year, after Modi came to power, a decision was taken to keep the event organised by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the IB outside the national capital.
The conference has since been held in Guwahati (Assam), Rann of Kutch (Gujarat), Hyderabad (Telangana), Tekanpur (Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh), Statue of Unity (Kevadiya, Gujarat), Pune (Maharashtra), Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh), Jaipur (Rajasthan) and Bhubaneswar (Odisha).
