Assam Police has a shortage of 15,351 personnel to maintain the state’s law and order situation.
This was informed by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday.
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Against a sanctioned strength of 86,959 police personnel, Assam currently has a strength of 71,608 police personnel leaving a big vacancy of 15,351 police personnel, MHA data available with this correspondent said.
The MHA said that police is a state subject and it is primarily the responsibility of the State Governments to fill up the vacancies in the police force in their respective States.
“The Centre also issues advisories to the States for filling up these vacancies in the States and to bring in the requisite reforms in the police administration to meet the expectations of the people,” the MHA said.
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Interestingly, almost all the Northeastern States have vacancies of police personnel. Arunachal Pradesh has a vacancy of 2,737 police personnel.
Likewise, Manipur has a vacancy of 5,634 police personnel, Meghalaya – 1,739, Mizoram – 3,205, Sikkim – 810, and Tripura has a vacancy of 6,925 police personnel.
Significantly, Nagaland is the only State in India which has a surplus of 1,375 police personnel. Against a sanctioned strength of 26,738 police personnel, the State has 28,113 police personnel.
As per data on police organisations being compiled by Bureau of Police Research & Development (BPRD), sanctioned strength of police personnel in India is 26,23,225, whereas actual strength is 20,91,488 and 5,31,737 vacancies are presently there in different states across India.
Vacancies, however, are not limited to State police forces only. Even central paramilitary forces are also facing manpower crisis.
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Assam Rifles has the vacancy of 8035 personnel against a sanctioned strength of 65143, BSF has shortage of 28905 personnel against its sanctioned strength of 265173, CISF has a vacancy of 24161 personnel against a sanctioned strength of 163313, CRPF has vacancy of 27825 personnel against a sanctioned strength of 324723, SSB has a total vacancy of 18633 personnel against its sanctioned strength of 97792, ITBP has a vacancy of 5169 personnel against a total sanctioned strength of 88439 personnel.
India’s terror investigation agency, National Investigation Agency (NIA) too has a staff shortage.
“Efforts are being made to bring more people on deputation to NIA by providing adequate accommodation and additional allowance of 20 percent to its staff,” the MHA said.
NIA has a total sanctioned strength of 1277 posts, out of which 144 posts were created in September, 2020. Presently 427 posts (including newly created 144 posts) are vacant. The percentage of vacancy is 33.43 percent of the total sanctioned strength.
State DGPs and DsG of CAPFs are regularly approached through formal channels to sponsor eligible and willing personnel for posting in NIA, the MHA said.