He cared for his men, brought in reforms

Few IPS officers know most of their men by name. Even fewer know the by-lanes of Mumbai like the back of their hand.

Few IPS officers know most of their men by name. Even fewer know the by-lanes of Mumbai like the back of their hand.

HT Image

So it was not surprising that the police force was happy to see Arup Patnaik become the city's police commissioner in February 2011.

They were certain that he would not shy away from leading from the front if the situation demanded it.

Patnaik did that – and more.

The man who began his career as an SBI officer in Orissa, brought about a host of reforms as the police chief.

From changes to the police canteen fare, to ordering the building of 10,000 staff quarters at Panvel and the conversion of the ramshackle police hospital at Nagpada to a modern multi-specialty hospital, Patnaik took care of his men.

He is also credited with clearing the huge backlog of promotion files lying untouched for years.

His feeling for the city's pulse came from his long stint -- first as the deputy commissioner of the city police, then additional commissioner and later joint commissioner (law and order).

The high point came during the 1992 riots and 1993 blasts investigations, when he played a key role in the recovery of 3,000 kg of RDX. During his earlier stint with the CBI, he was also credited with the probe into the securities scam that saw Harshad Mehta convicted.

Sadly, for a force starved for its long-lost power and prestige, all of it fell short of mark — a point made adequately by constable Pramod Tawde with his rose for MNS chief Raj Thackeray.