Coming soon, a network for police in northeastern states

NETWORK COMPRISES A CENTRAL CONTROL ROOM, MOBILE APP, CLOSEDUSER GROUPS, AND TIMELY ALERTS FOR SHARING OF INFO ON INCIDENTS OF CRIME

NEW DELHI: Nearly three months after a network of northeast police — NEPOL — was announced to facilitate sharing of information between the states in the region in tackling ins urgency and trans-border crime, the Assam police has circulated a concept note in this regard.

As per the note, reviewed by HT, the network will comprise a central control room, mobile application, closed-user-website, and timely alerts for seamless sharing of information on incidents of crime and smuggling among the NE states as well as Sikkim and West Bengal.

“We have distributed (the note) to there st of the six states in the northeast and to Sikkim and West Bengal. We have received replies from some of the states. We hope to sit with all stakeholders to decide on the actual structure of the network in a month’ s time,” said Mukesh Sahay, chief of Assam Police.

NEPOL, or North East Police Organisation, was first discussed in June this year during the twoday conference of police chiefs from the region.

Sahay said the idea is to share information with “the right per- son at the right place on the right time in the right way”. The network will connect top officials along with those on the ground. Cellphones of the police personnel may be equipped with an application through which they would access the information being shared.

“We know policing is a state subject. Therefore, we want to create a network that takes care of the sanctity of police jurisdiction and, at the same time, facilitates sharing of information to gain results on the ground in a timely action,” Sahay added.

The concept note emphasises on the“need for urgent response” in the wake of cross-border incidents of abduction, highway robbery, human trafficking, smuggling of narcotics and fake Indian currency notes or insurgency-related incidents.