Recently, Uttar Pradesh has announced a massive police recruitment drive to increase the number of women in the state’s police force by 20 percent. In 2013 itself, the central government had advised states to ensure that every police station should have at least 10 women constables and three sub-inspectors. The policy benchmark for the ratio of women at the national level is 33 percent, which means that women should constitute 33 percent of the total police personnel in the country. It is worth noting that women in Bihar were less than two per cent of the police force in 2010, but rose to 25.3 per cent by 2019, with the sharpest increase in the share of women in the police force.
According to the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D), there are still states in the country where even four percent of women policemen are not there. In the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, a minimum of 3.31 per cent women were in the police force. Government figures are showing that Bihar is currently in the best position in the police sex ratio. It has taken more than a decade for India to go up from 4.25 per cent in 2010 to 10.49 per cent in 2021 in terms of women police personnel. In contrast, Malaysia and China have 18 and 14 percent of women police personnel, respectively. More than 33 percent of women policemen in England can be claimed.
It is not that there are no vacancies in the police force, the national average is around 21.4 per cent, but the general practice is that the recruitment of women in any recruitment should not exceed one-third. At this rate, as the ‘India Justice Report 2020’ suggests, it will take three more years for Bihar to reach 33 per cent women police personnel, while a state like Madhya Pradesh will take 180 years. Emphasis is placed on filling constable level vacancies in recruitment, while key investigative and supervisory roles remain for men. As a result, women find themselves grouped in the lower category. The states which have the highest percentage of women police personnel, such as Bihar and Himachal Pradesh, also have only six and five percent women at the officer level.
Nevertheless, the intention to increase the number of women in the police force is welcome. Between 2015 and 2020, Tamil Nadu jumped from 13 to 19 percent, Gujarat from four to 16 percent, and Telangana from three to eight percent in terms of female police personnel. Other states lagged behind or found to be stable, such as Mizoram (6.8 to 7 percent), Sikkim (eight to 8.4 percent), and Odisha (8.8 percent to 9.1 percent).
The excuse is commonly made that women are not ready to join the police citing their lack of physical and mental fortitude. Despite dangerous action and sometimes excessive reliance on physical skills, the police are actually responsible for many tasks that require the use of more brain.
Most of the day-to-day functions of the police include communication with local communities, grievance redressal, conciliation, problem solving, patrolling, crime prevention, traffic regulation, serious crime reporting, evidence gathering, record keeping and court production. All these tasks require skilled intelligence, communication skills and knowledge. The police don’t have to participate in fights with civilians on the streets or stop armed robbers every day. Even in these circumstances, women are seen bravely acquitting themselves. Jacob Punnus, former Director General of Police of Kerala, says, ‘We need women in the police force for good policing more than the number of jobs women need in the police.’ this is true.
Yet there is a lack of institutional preparedness to induct women in large numbers in the police force. From separate toilets, proper working hours, and reluctance to offer flexi-time (not just for women), to accepting orders and intense patriarchal resistance, there are many problems that must be addressed. Not being able to ensure their safety at workplace through sexual harassment committees and strict orders is also a serious issue for the police. The police force should have a zero tolerance policy for any unfair treatment. Keep in mind, bullying and harassment are rarely reported here.
In a survey based on the Status of Policing Report 2019, a quarter of policemen said that there is no sexual harassment committee in their police station/jurisdiction. The report said that states such as Bihar, Karnataka and West Bengal have the highest levels of bias against women in the police force, meaning that personnel in these states are most likely to believe that women policemen are less skilled and have to face them. And focus should be on the house. The lack of institutional housing also makes them more socially troubled. Women need to be able to feel safe and respected in their professional environment before others can be protected. The image of the police force may not be attractive, but the need for employment and the natural ambition of better life opportunities often take its toll.
There is also a great need of women policemen to reduce the increasing violence against women. When there is a situation of equality in the police force, then women will also join it in greater numbers. Obviously, women tend to go more in areas where they are welcome. Bihar is a testament, in this state bound by tradition, when women have got a chance to join the police force collectively, they have come forward of their own free will.
(These are the author’s own views)