On the eve of International Women’s Day, three women Additional Deputy Commissioners of Police share the challenges they face, the changes they wish to see in the national Capital as police officers and their journeys so far as women cops.
Elaborating on the challenges of working in the National Capital, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Monika Bhardwaj says prior to getting posted in Delhi, Bhardwaj served as SSP in Karaikal region, Puducherry.
Talking about how working in a comparatively smaller region braced her for tough cases, she said: “In Puducherry, people maintain a certain dignity. However, the situation is different in Delhi where police are bound to solve cases as the common man is aware that if action is not taken in a particular case, they have other authorities to go up to.”
On the other hand, Amrutha Guguloth, Additional DCP (North-west) feels challenges are a part of her job. “I feel that we have been provided with enough police training to tackle any situation. Being a part of the police force in the national Capital, we try to fulfil our duties diligently. There are definitely law and order situations but that does not indicate lack of action on our parts.”
Likewise, Nupur Prasad, Additional DCP (South-west) feels that police are like a “social doctor” in a sense that they are the first ones to come in touch with the common man inorder to help them out address problems and resolve them. There are certain changes as well that these cops want to bring about in Delhi.
“It would be great if citizens become friendlier with the police. Apart from this, it would be helpful if cops show professionalism towards their work,” said Guguloth.
Talking about the changes to be brought in Delhi, Monika Bhardwaj adds: “I wish that there are more number of cops to solve cases as the number of pending cases are very high.” However, Prasad is happy with the way the Delhi Police functions.
The journeys of these three policewomen have been quite intriguing.
“It has been a fruitful journey till now. Only after joining as a police official after training did I realise that I was cut-out for this job. Though there have been many ups and downs, overall it has been a wonderful experience,” said Nupur Prasad. “I grew up seeing my father working as a sub-inspector. The day he got an award from Kiran Bedi I made up my mind to join the police force and since then there has been no looking back. Any job has its highs and lows but the satisfaction which you get after solving a case is tremendous,” said Monika.
Amrutha Guguloth says her urge to serve society led her to join the police. She adds: “I feel happy to be a cop as I get to serve the people through my job.”