National police conference reiterates need for 30% quota for women in job recruitments

The Hindu

15-05-2025

Speakers at the 11th National Conference of Women in Police (NCWP) reiterated the need for 30% reservation of women in all recruitments, besides flexibility in scheduling work for women personnel.
The NCWP was jointly organised by the Tamil Nadu Police and the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D), at the Tamil Nadu Police Academy (TNPA). Delegates from various States and Central organisations, along with over 140 women police personnel from Tamil Nadu, participated.
At the valedictory on Thursday, Director-General of Police (DGP), Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services, Seema Agarwal read out the resolution. She said that as far as possible, men and women officers should be trained together. She reiterated the need to increase the number of women outdoor trainers for both men and women.
A stay-in facility with a caretaker should be provided for women trainees with children till the age of three. Newly-recruited women officers should be posted to all wings of the Police Department as a matter of routine. The resolution demanded that women officers on maternity leave should not be transferred and one year of maternity leave and two years of childcare leave should be provided to women personnel of all ranks.
Releasing a souvenir and addressing the conference, Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin said the first formal recruitment of women into the Tamil Nadu Police was carried out in 1973, when a 22-member all-women police unit was established. 'What began with 22 women over 50 years ago, has now grown into a huge force of around 27,000 women police. This is one of the largest in the country,' he said.
He also recalled that in 1989, former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi ensured that women were brought into the decision-making levels of government by awarding them a 30% reservation in government jobs. As a result, the directly recruited women DSPs entered the Police Department for the first time. They rose up to the top ranks of Additional Director-Generals and Inspector-Generals and continue to grow in number and contribution.
Stating that the Tamil Nadu Police have been an example of mainstreaming of women, Mr. Udhayanidhi added that he was proud to share that 43% of the law and order police stations in the State had women station house officers.
Minister for MSME T.M. Anbarasan, Additional Chief Secretary, Home, Dheeraj Kumar, and DGP Shankar Jiwal were among those present.