Haryana CM Khattar announces weekly offs for police personnel

“It is beyond my understanding why cops do not get holidays,” says Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar.

May Day brought good news for the Haryana police as chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced on Sunday that the police personnel will get weekly offs from now on.

Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced on Sunday that the state police personnel will get weekly offs from now on. (Parveen Kumar/HT Photo)

The CM made the announcement at the inauguration of the newly constructed building that houses the police commissioner’s office and the Haryana state cyber crime.

“It is beyond my understanding why cops do not get holidays. On the occasion of May Day, I am announcing that cops in Haryana should get one off in a week from now onwards,” Khattar said.

The CM said the decision was taken keeping in mind the stress level of officials.

The issue of workload of the police was taken up during the inauguration by director general of police (DGP), KP Singh, who said that the lifespan of a police official is shorter by five years than that of an average person because of the stressful life.

After the DGP, Haryana PWD minister Rao Narbir Singh also requested the CM to ensure that officials get some time to relax out of their busy schedule so that their efficiency can be increased. He was followed by Gurgaon Member of Parliament and Union minister of state for defence Rao Inderjit Singh, who supported the DGP’s demands.

MoS Rao Inderjit Singh, however, said that the Haryana police has to be more proactive in preventing crimes.

“Women in distress hesitate to visit police stations. That has to change,” he said.

Additional commissioner of police Dharna Yadav was quick to refute the MP’s contentions, saying that the Gurgaon police has come a long way.

The CM also listed initiatives that his government is initiating to help uplift the police department, which is facing a shortage of as many of 12000 personnel.

“We have decided to employ 3,000 ex-servicemen under 50 years of age on adhoc basis in the forces. We are also taking steps to modernise the force. We want the Haryana police to be the best in the country,” Khattar said.

The new building next to erstwhile commissioner of police’s office on the court road near Rajiv Chowk is a one-roof office for all top cops of the district

The highlight of the building is that it has been constructed in line with the Energy Conservation Building Code and is exclusively powered by solar-energy lamps.

Equipped with biometric access control system and with provisions for rainwater harvesting and solar water heating, the building, spread over 135,000 square-feet area, has come up at the cost of Rs 27 crore.