Hry revives STF to chase hardened criminals, will start ops by Jan-end

WAS DISBANDED IN 2010 FOLLOWING EXTORTION CHARGES; RISING CRIME IN HARYANA FORCED STATE TO REVIVE IT

CHANDIGARH: Trigger-happy gangsters and drug lords will be the key targets of Haryana police Special Task Force (STF) which is set to start the cat and mouse chase by the end of January.

Rising crime—shoot-outs, inter-gang rivalry and drug menace—in the state has nudged the Manohar Lal Khattar-led BJP government to revive the STF which was disbanded in 2010 by the previous Congress government following extortion charges.

As per the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB-2016) data, Haryana ranked third in the country when it came to crime rates and sixth in crimes against women.

Initially, the STF will focus on the National Capital Region (NCR), which is being used as a hideout by on-the-run interstate gangs of criminals.

The STF will be based in Bhondsi and the idea behind the STF having its base in Gurgaon is its nearness to Delhi and NCR. “We would like to focus on the NCR first. Better coordination with Delhi police will be very useful in cracking cases and curbing gangs. We are equally concerned about drugs and its supply chain that will be under our radar,” said Prashant Agrawal, additional director general of police (ADGP, crime).

The STF will work under the supervision of the state crime branch. It will be headed by inspector general (IG) Saurabh Singh, a 1998-batch IPS officer. The STF will have officers of the rank of superintendent of police, deputy superintendent of police and supporting staff who have been picked on the basis of their service records and competence.

“We have handpicked the STF staff keeping in view their professional competence,” Agrawal said.