Guwahati, June 26 (IANS): In its bid to raise the level of efficiency and competency of the state police force, Assam Thursday decided to strengthen the intelligence wing of Assam Police and make it a separate cadre on the lines of the Intelligence Bureau.
The decision was taken at a law and order review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi.
Gogoi asked state Chief Secretary Jitesh Khosla to initiate measures aimed at strengthening the intelligence network so as to raise the efficiency and competency of the police force in maintaining law and order.
The chief minister also asked him to take up steps to separate the intelligence wing from the police.
"It is of crucial importance that training is given for developing the right attitude and for imparting the relevant knowledge and skill to improve the intelligence gathering mechanism to meet the growing challenges of terrorist outfits," Gogoi said.
Principal Secretary (Home and Political) M.G.V.K. Bhanu said the decision to set up a separate intelligence cadre "is aimed at raising a set of officials with the correct aptitude and training along with more professionalism for the task".
He said that due to frequent transfers, the task of intelligence gathering suffers.
"Now, personnel who are recruited in the intelligence cadre will go through a specialised training that will help in developing the aptitude and orientation that are required for the specialised task," Bhanu said.
Proposed to be set up on the lines of the Intelligence Bureau, the intelligence wing will have a set of personnel recruited through a separate procedure and will remain there till superannuation.
The chief minister also asked the chief secretary to make police stations more "people-friendly".
"A citizen who visits a police station would feel ensured only if the station has better waiting rooms and more spacious office for police personnel. Our police force needs to be friendly, responsible, and must have compassion and empathy for the people," Gogoi said.