Post of DSP lying vacant in Darrang for over a year

From our Correspondent

MANGALDAI, February 18: Darrang, which is a sensitive district, has been functioning without the Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) (HQ) since the past one year. One Additiol Superintendent of Police (Border) rendered his service in the district for 20 days only and maged to get his transfer on deputation, thereby making this important post vacant again.

The Additiol Superintendent of Police (HQ), Diganta Chowdhury on his promotion got his release on December 31 and accordingly joined as Deputy Commissioner of Police, (Security and Intelligence) in Guwahati City Police Commissionerate on January 1. The Home Department took more than one month to appoint S Chakrabarty as the Additiol Superintendent of Police (HQ) few days back. On the other hand, the Additiol Superintendent of Police (Border) Rup Kishor Handique on his transfer to Morigaon district was released on January 5 and joined his new place of posting on January 6. Significantly, Additiol Superintendent of Police (Traffic) of erstwhile Guwahati City Police, Ujjwal Barua joined here as the Additiol Superintendent of Police (Border) January 8, but on January 27 he left Darrang district to join as the Additiol Superintendent of Police in the Chief Minister’s Security Cell in Guwahati, that too on deputation. Similarly the important post of Deputy Superintendent of Police (HQ) in Darrang district has been lying vacant since February of 2014 with the transfer of Md. Hussain who has joined as Deputy Superintendent of Police (HQ) in Jorhat district.

In 2008, the Darrang district witnessed the unprecedented group clash that origited from its neighbouring Udalguri district in which more than two lakh innocent villagers of both the districts were compelled to take shelter in relief camps while a total of about 68 innocent villagers lost their lives. Both the districts again in 2012 were about to witness the group clash but due to the tough stand taken by the administration and the police, the situation was brought under control. Perhaps the Chief Minister, officials of the Home Department and Director General of Police Khagen Sarma are not aware of this sorry state of affairs in the police administration in Darrang district.

The district police in Darrang, on the other hand, like other districts, too have been facing acute shortage of officers in the rank of Sub-Inspectors in seven police stations, including the ASEB police station, five police out posts, three watch posts and the lone patrol post in the district. The existing officers in the rank of Sub Inspector of Police are over burdened work which has caused tremendous hardship in prompt and proper investigation, besides tackling the law and order situation.