West Bengal Police
Encyclopedia
The West Bengal Police is one of the two police forces of the India
n state of West Bengal
. (The other is the Kolkata Police
, which has a separate jurisdiction.)
The West Bengal Police was reorganized under provisions of the Police Act 1861 during the British Raj
. It is headed by an officer designated as the Director General of Police
who reports to the State Government through the Home (Police) Department. Shri Naparajit Mukherjee ,an IPS officer of 1976 batch took over as the DG & IGP of West Bengal Police on August 31, 2010 and is expected to occupy the post until 2013.
The West Bengal Police has jurisdiction concurrent with the eighteen revenue districts of the State (excluding the metropolitan city of Kolkata
) which comprises one of the two general police districts of West Bengal as under the Police Act 1861. The other general police district consists of the major portions of the metropolitan area of Kolkata
, and has a separate police force (Kolkata Police
) constituted and administered under the Calcutta Police Act 1866 & Calcutta (Suburban Police) Act 1866. This arrangement, unique in India, was conceived during colonial times when Calcutta was the capital of British India. The city police have been kept independent of the state police force.
The officer who heads a Sub-Division is known as SDPO i.e. Sub Divisional Police Officer.
A Police Station is the basic unit of policing, responsible for prevention and detection of crime, maintenance of public order, enforcing law in general as well as for performing protection duties and making security arrangements for the constitutional authorities, government functionaries, representatives of the public in different legislative bodies and local self governments, public figures etc.
(CID), Enforcement Branch (EB), Intelligence Branch (IB), Traffic Branch, Police Telecommunications, Training Wing, State Crime Records Bureau (SCRB)& Police Computer Centre (PCC). An elite force named "STRACO" has been created to combat insurgency & terrorism, posted in West Zone to fight Maoist guerrillas.WBP is raising another new "Counter Insurgency" force on the line of Gray Hound Special Force of Andhra Pradesh Police. The Police Manual of West Bengal Police was compiled and issued during British Raj and is known as the Police Regulations of Bengal(PRB), 1943 and with subsequent modifications and corrections, is the guiding source of internal Police Organization and Administration under its area of responsibility.
1. Constables / Lady constables: Appointing authorities are Superintendents of Police / Commandants.
2. Sub Inspectors: Appointment done through West Bengal Publice Service Commission.
3. West Bengal Police Service: Officers selected through West Bengal Civil Service (Exe) etc. Examination conducted by West Bengal Publice Service Commission http://www.pscwb.org.in/ are appointed as Deputy Superintendents of Police.
4. Indian Police Service: Officers selected through Civil Service Examination conducted by Union Publice Service Commission http://www.upsc.gov.in/ are appointed as Assistant Superintendents of Police.
The headquarter of EFR at Salua, Near Kharagpur.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n state of West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
. (The other is the Kolkata Police
Kolkata Police
The Kolkata Police Force is one of the two police forces of the Indian state of West Bengal....
, which has a separate jurisdiction.)
The West Bengal Police was reorganized under provisions of the Police Act 1861 during the British Raj
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
. It is headed by an officer designated as the Director General of Police
Director General of Police
In India the director general of police or inspector general of police is a three-star rank and the highest ranking police officer in Indian States & Union Territories. All DGPs/IGPs are Indian Police Service officers. The DGP/IGP is usually the head of the state police force in every Indian state...
who reports to the State Government through the Home (Police) Department. Shri Naparajit Mukherjee ,an IPS officer of 1976 batch took over as the DG & IGP of West Bengal Police on August 31, 2010 and is expected to occupy the post until 2013.
The West Bengal Police has jurisdiction concurrent with the eighteen revenue districts of the State (excluding the metropolitan city of Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
) which comprises one of the two general police districts of West Bengal as under the Police Act 1861. The other general police district consists of the major portions of the metropolitan area of Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
, and has a separate police force (Kolkata Police
Kolkata Police
The Kolkata Police Force is one of the two police forces of the Indian state of West Bengal....
) constituted and administered under the Calcutta Police Act 1866 & Calcutta (Suburban Police) Act 1866. This arrangement, unique in India, was conceived during colonial times when Calcutta was the capital of British India. The city police have been kept independent of the state police force.
Zones
The police administration in the state is divided into three police zones and a Government Railway Police (GRP) Zone, each headed by an Inspector General of Police. Each Zone consists of one or more Ranges headed by an officer designated as the Deputy Inspector General of Police (or Special Inspector General of Police). In all, there are 22 police districts (including four consisting of Government Railway Police districts), each headed by a Superintendent of Police. Each Zone is headed by an Inspector General of Police. The three Zones are South Bengal, Western Bengal and North Bengal, and an office of the IGP railways.Ranges
West Bengal Police has seven Police Ranges and a Railways Range. South Bengal Zone has two Ranges: Presidency Range, consisting of the districts of South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas and Howrah and Murshidabad Range, consisting of the districts of Nadia and Murshidabad. Western Zone also has two Ranges: Burdwan Range, consisting of Hooghly, Burdwan and Birbhum districts and Midnapore Range, consisting of Paschim Midnapur, Purba Midnapur, Bankura and Purulia Districts. North Bengal Zone has three Ranges: Jalpaiguri Range, consisting of the districts of Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar; Darjeeling Range, consisting of Darjeeling and Uttar Dinajpur and Malda Range, consisting of the districts of Malda and Dakshin Dinajpur.Districts
Each Police District is either coterminous with the Revenue district or in the case of Government Railway Police districts, is located within a number of revenue districts. It is headed by a District Superintendent of Police (or simply called Superintendent of Police). Each district comprises two or more Sub-Divisions, several Circles and Police Stations.Sub-Divisions
Each Sub-Division is headed by one Police officer of the rank Deputy Superintendent of Police (members of West Bengal Police Service, a directly recruited officer or one promoted from the ranks) or an Additional Superintendent of Police (members of Indian Police Service).The officer who heads a Sub-Division is known as SDPO i.e. Sub Divisional Police Officer.
Circles
A Circle comprises several Police Stations. An Inspector of Police who heads a police circle is the Circle Inspector of Police or CI.Stations
A Police Station is headed by either a Sub-Inspector (lower subordinate rank) or an Inspector (an upper subordinate rank).A Police Station is the basic unit of policing, responsible for prevention and detection of crime, maintenance of public order, enforcing law in general as well as for performing protection duties and making security arrangements for the constitutional authorities, government functionaries, representatives of the public in different legislative bodies and local self governments, public figures etc.
Organisation
The WBP are divided into a number of units: the Armed Battalions consisting of State Armed Police (SAP), Eastern Frontier Rifles (EFR)and India Reserve Battalions (IRBs), Criminal Investigation DepartmentCriminal Investigation Department
The Crime Investigation Department is the branch of all Territorial police forces within the British Police and many other Commonwealth police forces, to which plain clothes detectives belong. It is thus distinct from the Uniformed Branch and the Special Branch.The Metropolitan Police Service CID,...
(CID), Enforcement Branch (EB), Intelligence Branch (IB), Traffic Branch, Police Telecommunications, Training Wing, State Crime Records Bureau (SCRB)& Police Computer Centre (PCC). An elite force named "STRACO" has been created to combat insurgency & terrorism, posted in West Zone to fight Maoist guerrillas.WBP is raising another new "Counter Insurgency" force on the line of Gray Hound Special Force of Andhra Pradesh Police. The Police Manual of West Bengal Police was compiled and issued during British Raj and is known as the Police Regulations of Bengal(PRB), 1943 and with subsequent modifications and corrections, is the guiding source of internal Police Organization and Administration under its area of responsibility.
Recruitments
Entries are done at the following ranks:1. Constables / Lady constables: Appointing authorities are Superintendents of Police / Commandants.
2. Sub Inspectors: Appointment done through West Bengal Publice Service Commission.
3. West Bengal Police Service: Officers selected through West Bengal Civil Service (Exe) etc. Examination conducted by West Bengal Publice Service Commission http://www.pscwb.org.in/ are appointed as Deputy Superintendents of Police.
4. Indian Police Service: Officers selected through Civil Service Examination conducted by Union Publice Service Commission http://www.upsc.gov.in/ are appointed as Assistant Superintendents of Police.
Eastern Frontier Rifles
The Eastern Frontier Rifles are an armed police force of the WBP, the purpose of which is to control major law & order problems, communal riots and terrorist attacks. Many contingents of EFR are kept deployed in various disturbed areas of the State. However, in recent years the effectiveness of this force has been weakened by overuse and prolonged deployment at Police Stations for day-to-day law & order duties.The headquarter of EFR at Salua, Near Kharagpur.