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Hurrah for separate Investigation Units in police stations

Praja Foundation reviews the implications of the new order which stipulates that all police stations will have one Investiation Unit.
by Praja Foundation, Mumbai

Congratulations to Mr Sanjeev Dayal, Maharashtra’s Director General of Police for the long awaited announcement to separate Investigation Units (IUs) from law and order police. The Standing Order No. 24 of 2015, which follows the Supreme Court directive, means that IU officers and constables will not be assigned to duties under any other category of investigation and will be exempt from extraction for law and order duties as well.

The order stipulates that all the police stations and district police will have at least one IU; numbers will increase depending on the average number of serious cases registered over three years. According to Dayal’s order, which will come into effect on July 1, 2015, each IU will investigate a maximum 15 cases a year. According to the Director General’s order officers in charge of the investigation wing will supervise the investigating as well as pairavi units, who follow up on the cases being tried in court. The order also mentions that that women police officers and constables will aid IUs. There is a stipulation that Mumbai needs 691 personnel for investigation, pairavi and women units; and these will be chosen from already existing personnel in the police force. There are also provisions for a fixed tenure for IUs with fully equipped legal, forensic, scientific and technological resources.

Praja has been consistently taking up the issue of separation of investigation and law and order personnel in its White Papers on the issue Law and Order and Policing in Mumbai. According to Nitai Mehta, Managing Trustee, Praja Foundation, “One of the urgent steps to address the issue of lack of IUs has been laid out by the Supreme Court directives on Police Reform in the Prakash Singh case of 2006, i.e. the separation of investigation from law and order. According to experts, this does not even require a legislative intervention. Even the office of the Police Commissioner or the Home Minister of the State has the power to introduce this much-needed change in the policing policy of the city, and perhaps the state as well.”

The gap between sanctioned and available IOs (Investigating Officers) needs to be bridged; a total of 4,301 IOs are sanctioned, but only 2,904 are working, a gap of 32 per cent! Although this gap has reduced from 50 per cent in 2013; total of 1,397 officers are still needed to bridge the gap completely. Due to this gap, investigations have not been conducted in an organised manner. Mhaske contends, “A study of acquitted cases shows that the chief reason for acquittal has been ‘lack of evidence’. This, in turn, showcases the performance of the IO, the public prosecutor and the lack of coordination between the two.”

Praja’s crime White Papers also present some startling data regarding conviction rates in criminal cases. Milind Mhaske, Project Director, Praja Foundation says, “Conviction rates in Class II serious offences (cases involving bodily harm, murder, rape, grievous hurt, kidnapping, abduction etc.) has been an abysmal 8 per cent in 2013 – 92 per cent of those charge-sheeted have got away scot-free! Overall, the conviction rate remains at a low 22 per cent”. To maintain law and order in the city, it is imperative that these figures rise.

Low conviction rates lead to thriving crime and, consequently, an unsafe city. These figures highlight the lack of IOs in the city. Mehta says, “Understaffing and multiplicity of tasks in the Mumbai Police Force is compromising investigation and there by leading to low conviction rates. A fully manned force will mean that the officers handling criminal cases will focus solely on these investigations, rather than being called on to man roadblocks and performing bandobast duties. Consequently, cases that make their way to the courts will be watertight and there will be an assurance that the guilty will be convicted”.

(Picture courtesy www.mahapolice.gov.in. Image is used for representational purpose only)

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Injection basics: Prepare your child for his shots

Young children must be mentally prepared for receiving daily insulin shots. Ease your child into the process with easy steps.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

A parent’s – any parent’s – biggest nightmare is watching their child in pain. Parenthood is all about fortifying oneself against the sight of one’s suffering child, so that the parent may give the child the strength to get through his or her illness.

Many parents are apprehensive when their young child is detected with diabetes and with good reason – the doctor might prescribe regular insulin shots. Any child is afraid of needles, and it can be daunting to explain to your child that he or she needs to take insulin shots every day. However, if you convince yourself that this is a necessary step in your child’s road to recovery, you can persuade your child that taking injections every day is a good thing. In time, your child will fear the process less and even be prepared to take injections by himself.

Here are 5 steps to follow in preparing your child to take injections:

1. Talk to the child calmly. Explain why your child needs to take daily injections. Tell him or her, “You need to take your injections so that you can grow up healthy and strong.” Every child needs to be told the reason behind your actions – don’t tell him that injections must be taken “because you say so.” Not preparing the child for the process can make him fearful and resistant to the idea. If necessary, have the conversation with your doctor present so that all questions can be answered.

2. Don’t be squeamish. If you show a fear of needles, so will your child. Show the insulin bottle and syringe to your child, and demonstrate how you will draw up the required dose of insulin before injecting him. Explain every step of the process, right down to how you will inject the needle. Tell your child that the needle will not hurt after a while, and that he must be absolutely still while being injected. Keep your tone measured – your aim is to remove the fear associated with the process.

3. Be careful with the injection. Be extremely precise with the dosage and leave out any air bubbles in the canister. Next, dip a cotton ball in cold water, squeeze it and rub it over the injection site. Pinch the skin at the injection site using your forefinger and thumb, and plunge the needle in slowly and completely. Talk to your child soothingly while the needle is in, and now push the plunger so that all the insulin is injected. Stop pinching the skin and slowly remove the needle. Apply gentle pressure at the site for five seconds. After the first few times, your child will learn to relax during the injection.

4. Supervise your child’s dosage. Your child may be in his teens and able to take the injection without your help – still supervise the process. Make sure the dosage is precise, and that the needle is completely plunged in. If there is an insulin leak (this happens when the needle has not gone in deep enough), don’t let the child take more insulin to compensate for the loss – this might cause blood sugar levels to plunge.

5. Consult the doctor regularly for dosage. As children grow, the requirement for insulin may vary. Regular blood tests are a must, and so are doctor consultations. Be precise in following the prescribed dosage. Also try and maintain a record of blood sugar readings, changed dosages and prescribed dietary controls so that your child’s diabetes may remain under control.

(Picture courtesy www.telegraph.co.uk. Image used for representational purpose only)

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‘People should want you around, not out’

Mumbai’s favourite son, Sachin Tendulkar, talks about life post-retirement, and why the second innings is as important as the first.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

The debate over whether he is the greatest cricketer of all time may continue to rage for several more years, but there’s no disputing the class and humility of cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar.

The second innings is as important as the first one in life, cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar told the audience at the keynote session of the India Today Conclave. “When I was playing, all my energy and concentration was focussed on the game. My family, and my well-wishers, made sure I did not have to worry about the other aspects. And now that I am playing the second innings of my life post-retirement, I want to give something back to the society, and the people who have stood by me ever since the first day I went to Ramakant Achrekar sir’s nets at Shivaji Park in Dadar,” he said.

Dwelling on his fascination for the game, Tendulkar said he was in love with cricket right from age six. Sunil Gavaskar and Viv Richards were his childhood idols, but he said he was always his own man. “I wanted to bat like them, but I still always wanted to be Sachin Tendulkar,” he said.

Revealing how he realised he made the right call on retiring after the home series against West Indies in 2013, the legend said he had to play an exhibition game at Lord’s last July without getting any practice beforehand since it had rained. “When I was in there, my body told me that I had made the right decision to retire!” he said.

Tendulkar went on to exhort the audience to avoid shortcuts in life: “Try and be a good person. My father used to say that people should want you around. They should not want you out.”

 

Asked if he intended to play a long innings in politics now that he is a Rajya Sabha MP, Tendulkar said, “I won’t join politics. Once a sportsman, always a sportsman.”

“To me, cricket is team work and not about individuals. There are stages where the captain come into play and he will guide, take important decisions on the field but eventually the batsmen would have to go out and score runs and the bowlers have to land the ball in those areas,” Tendulkar said.

“I was dropped from captaincy after only 12 or 13 months in my first stint. That was a disappointment because you select the captain thinking that he is going to take the team forward and then if that stint is not long enough, then the success rate becomes zero. If you play four matches, you lose two, then you are 50 per cent successful, so on and so forth.

“My tenure was not long enough and it was a big disappointment for me to overcome,” Tendulkar revealed. He then cheered the audience by saying that he firmly believed that “India would win the 2015 World Cup. There is not a single box that the team has not ticked. We don’t give enough credit when the team does well. I give full credit to this team.”

(Picture courtesy www.punjabupdate.com)

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A band of men saying ‘No’

The city-based Men Against Violence and Abuse (MAVA) is organising the ‘Say NO, Accept NO’ event for colleges located in Mumbai.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

A group of men and boys are talking to collegians in Mumbai to spread a simple but potent message: Say NO, Accept NO.

The brainchild of city-based gender rights organisation Men Against Violence & Abuse (MAVA), which has been working among the youth to prevent gender-based violence on women for the past 22 years, is organising ‘Yuva Abhivyakti 2015’, a two-day Inter-Collegiate cultural event between January 10 and 11, 2015.

The event, to be held at Amar Hind Mandal, Dadar West, would comprise poster making, essay writing, slogan writing, elocution, group singing and street play competitions on the theme of ‘Say NO, Accept NO’.

“The competitions aim at stimulating girls to say ‘NO’ to Verbal Abuse, Unwelcome Hug, Forced Marriage, Sexual Harassment, Domestic Violence, Dowry or anything about which they are uncomfortable, and simultaneously tell boys how they should accept the ‘NO’ of a girl,” explains Harish Sadani, Founder-Member, MAVA. He adds, “The competitions are open to all students studying in any college affiliated to Mumbai and SNDT Women’s University.”

For registration, interested students should contact leaders of respective competitions on the phone numbers given on the poster alongside. Alternately, they can send an email at yuvaabhivyakti2015@gmail.com.

“We hope that college students will participate in the event and its competitions in large numbers,” Sadani says.

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Maha Gov awards electronic limbs to accident victims

Mulund based social organisation Yuvak Pratishthan awards electronic limbs to 13 victims of train and road accidents in Mumbai city.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Mumbai and its people are increasingly at threat to life and limb owing to erratic and rash road driving, or worse, falling between the gaps in railway platforms and train coaches. After the Monica More train accident made headlines this year, many city-based organisations and individuals came forward to offer the girl’s family monetary help as well. However, what really helped Monica was receiving electronic prosthetic arms.

Another initiative in Mumbai recently witnessed the distribution of electronic limbs to 13 accident victims in Mumbai, at the hands of the Maharashtra State Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao. The recipients were accident victims who had lost their limbs in train accident, road or other accidents. Electronic limbs are typically powered by batteries and they are operated by means of electronic signals sent by the brain to muscles in the area (where the prosthetic is attached) telling it how to move.

The distribution programme was organised by Yuvak Pratishthan, which is founded by Member of Parliament Kirit Somaiya. Interestingly, Monika More was also present on the occasion. 

See some pics of the distribution ceremony below:

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Young Parsis take up the mantle for the community

Parsi community to promote togetherness and camaraderie through a series of programmes to be organised by the Xtremely Young Zoroastrians (XYZ).
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

The Parsi community is a riddle to all other communities in Mumbai: there are less than one lakh of them in the city, but they are mostly moneyed, highly educated and extremely revered as a community. The Parsis are intimately connected with Mumbai’s history, and though they don’t have the numbers, the community has left its mark on the city’s social fabric.

In order to keep the flame alive and create a sense of belonging and pride amongst the youngsters of the Zoroastrian Community, the newly established XYZ (Xtremely Young Zoroastrians) organisation has devised several programmes in the service of the community.

The organisation was launched yesterday at a South Mumbai-based auditorium, with the motto ‘Pursuit of Happiness’. XYZ would strive towards promoting togetherness and camaraderie through the series of programmes, to be conducted throughout the year.

Children from the Parsi community presented various religious and cultural performances, while there were other community talks and the awarding of an achiever from the community. “The launch ceremony also observed formation of an executive council of young Zoroastrians and an advisory board of renowned dignitaries from the Zoroastrian community. Under the able guidance of their holy Priest, the young Zoroastrians, all in the age-group from 5 to 15 years took the pledge to keep the flame alive by devising several programmes in the service of the community. These young Zoroastrians who would act as office bearers for XYZ were named after their historic figures, such as Daraius’ Daredevils from Colaba, Cyrus’ Superstars from Tardeo, Jamshed’s Giants from Byculla, Homai’s Heroes from Parel, Behram’s Battalion from Dadar, Rustom’s Rockstars from Bandra and Tehmurasp’s Titans from Andheri,” explained Hoshaang Gotla, founder of XYZ.

He added, “The XYZ-organised programmes will begin on Christmas Day, whereby the young Zoroastrians will pay visits to orphanages and old age homes across the city and gift the destitute children and the differently-abled ones. This is an attempt to bring a smile on their face and give them a ray of hope. Further, XYZ would strive towards building a strong sense of belonging and pride amongst the Zoroastrian children for their community. The religious values are an important part of our culture and we want our children to start adhering to them from an early age. The range of activities that would be carried out by XYZ would include developing leadership skills like goal setting, decision making, team work, people skills and money management and ethics.”

XYZ strongly believes that they would be able to create a sense of belonging and pride amongst the young Zoroastrians and preach the values laid down by the Zoroastrian Community.

What do you think of this initiative? Tell us in the comments section below.

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