Lucknow, October 1: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday said the state faced serious law-and-order challenges before 2017, claiming that “dreaded mafias” held sway across districts and ran parallel governments.
Addressing a programme at Lok Bhavan, where he flagged off 87 technology-equipped interceptor vehicles, Adityanath said his government had undertaken police reforms and expanded the use of technology to strengthen law enforcement.
“Before 2017, dreaded mafias held sway in every district and parallel Governments were being run. Police were helpless before them,” he said.
Adityanath said police infrastructure and training facilities were also inadequate at the time. He claimed that only around 6,000 police personnel could be trained annually before 2017, while his government subsequently focused on expanding infrastructure and modernising policing.
The Chief Minister said Uttar Pradesh had established seven police commissionerates and installed more than 14 lakh cameras across cities. Integrated command and control centres, he added, had also been set up in districts to improve surveillance and response.
The newly launched interceptor vehicles, comprising four-wheelers and two-wheelers, are aimed at strengthening traffic enforcement and improving road safety across the state.
Calling road safety a major challenge, Adityanath said technology could play an important role in enforcing traffic norms and reducing accidents.
During the programme, police personnel were also honoured for gallantry. Inspector Sunil Kumar Singh of the Uttar Pradesh Police Special Task Force was posthumously honoured with the Kirti Chakra, which Adityanath said was the first time the UP Police had received the gallantry award.
Another 16 police officers and personnel were honoured with the President’s gallantry medals, while 10 personnel received the Chief Minister’s gallantry medals.
Adityanath also released former Uttar Pradesh DGP Prakash Singh’s book Sangharsh, which documents his 35 years of experience in the civil police and challenging states.
The Chief Minister highlighted Singh’s service in Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland, Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir, and his long-standing efforts to push for police reforms.
Adityanath said effective policing, institutional reforms and technology were essential for creating a secure environment and supporting economic and social development.
