Overcame challenges of being in male-dominated profession, says Noida police commissioner Singh

Noida: Speaking at a panel discussion organised by a private university in Noida on Thursday, Gautam Budh Nagar police commissioner Laxmi Singh talked about the challenges of being in a male-dominated profession and how strong support from her family along with her will power helped her overcome these challenges

Noida: Speaking at a panel discussion organised by a private university in Noida on Thursday, Gautam Budh Nagar police commissioner Laxmi Singh talked about the challenges of being in a male-dominated profession and how strong support from her family along with her will power helped her overcome these challenges.

Overcame challenges of being in male-dominated profession, says Noida police commissioner Singh

“Coming from an engineering background, my journey was very tough as mechanical engineering is considered to be a career choice for men. Later, when I decided to become an IPS officer, I was faced with a different set of challenges as the police force is also male-dominated. However, with firm belief in myself and strong family support, I was able to overcome the challenges successfully. Society has a fixed set of ideas and notions when it comes to women, they constantly judge her for her choices and underestimate her capabilities. However, it is up to women to break that mould,” she said.

Commissioner Singh was speaking at a panel discussion organised in the Amity University at Sector 125 on the theme “Women at Workplaces — Building and Nurturing an Equitable Workplace”.

Talking about her experience in the police force, Singh said, “Whenever courses on gender sensitisation were organised, we were told by senior officers to send women officers for this training. However, this is where I always resisted my bosses. Such training is not meant for women as we are inherently sensitised. It is the men who need to be sensitised on the potential of a woman colleague and to see her only as a ‘colleague’ rather than a woman. They need to be ready to be led by women. Women are inborn multi-taskers and can manage several things simultaneously, whereas men do not possess that ability”.

Singh became the first woman police commissioner in Uttar Pradesh on November 28, 2022, after she took over as Gautam Budh Nagar police chief. The 48-year-old is a 2000-batch IPS officer and holds the rank of inspector general.

Singh previously served as the IG/DIG of the Special Task Force (STF) in Gautam Budh Nagar from January 1, 2018 to March 5, 2018.

Before taking over as Gautam Budh Nagar police commissioner, Singh was serving as IG (Range), Lucknow. She has also worked in various capacities in Varanasi, Gonda, Chitrakoot, Bulandshahr and Baghpat.