Gandhinagar, June 8 (IANS) Newly appointed Gujarat Director General of Police (DGP) Gyanender Singh Malik formally assumed charge on Monday and outlined an agenda centred on technology-driven policing, expanded CCTV surveillance, stronger action against narcotics networks, cybercrime prevention and faster resolution of public grievances.

Malik, a 1993-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer who was serving as Ahmedabad Police Commissioner before his elevation, took charge at Police Bhavan in Gandhinagar.

His appointment was announced by the state government on Saturday, ending nearly five months during which the post had been held as an additional charge by senior officer K.L.N. Rao.

Addressing reporters after taking over as head of the Gujarat Police, Malik said modern technology would play an increasingly important role in law enforcement and pointed to Ahmedabad’s extensive CCTV network as a model that could be replicated elsewhere.

“More than 24,000 CCTV cameras had been installed across Ahmedabad with public participation. Of these, feeds from over 3,000 strategically located cameras are linked directly to police stations, while the police control room receives live feeds from more than 7,000 cameras,” he said.

According to Malik, the surveillance network has helped improve crime detection and deter offences including theft, robbery and chain-snatching.

“People know they can be identified through CCTV footage. That awareness itself helps in controlling crime,” he said.

The new DGP said one of his priorities would be strengthening the grievance redressal system so that citizens’ complaints are resolved at police station and district levels without requiring repeated visits to senior authorities in Gandhinagar.

He also stressed the importance of maintaining public confidence in the police, particularly in rural areas, and said efforts would be made to improve communication and engagement between police personnel and local communities.

Malik identified narcotics trafficking as a major challenge and said the fight against drugs would remain among the Gujarat Police’s highest priorities.

“Narcotics is one of our top priorities. We will continue to intensify our efforts against drug networks,” he said, adding that the Anti-Narcotics Task Force would be further strengthened to improve enforcement across the state.

Cybercrime was another area requiring urgent attention, he said, noting that online offences were growing rapidly and demanded specialised skills.

Malik said training programmes developed in Ahmedabad would be expanded to district police units to improve investigative capabilities and technical expertise.

Emphasising proactive policing, he said effective detection of offences was itself a crime-prevention tool.

“Detection is the best prevention. If an offender is caught after one or two crimes, it prevents many more offences from happening in the future,” Malik said.

He added that while cyber security, narcotics control and crime detection would receive special attention, maintaining law and order would remain the primary responsibility of the state police force.

Malik brings more than three decades of policing experience to the post. A native of Haryana, he is an electrical engineering graduate from Banaras Hindu University and also holds a law degree from Gujarat University.

During his career, he has served in district policing assignments across Gujarat, worked with the Border Security Force and the Central Industrial Security Force on central deputation, and participated in the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Kosovo.

He has previously served as Superintendent of Police in several districts, including Kutch, Bharuch, Surendranagar, Porbandar and Dangs, and later held senior positions in state and central security organisations.

Malik was appointed Ahmedabad Police Commissioner in July 2023 before being chosen to lead the Gujarat Police.

His appointment followed selection from a panel forwarded through the prescribed process and comes as Gujarat seeks to strengthen policing capabilities in areas ranging from organised crime and drug trafficking to cybersecurity and public safety.

–IANS

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