Bengal govt working to reduce police response time to emergencies: CM Suvendu

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Saturday (Oct 10, 2026) said his government wants to reduce police response time as it launched the Emergency Response Support System (ERSS-112).

Speaking at a program at the Brigade Parade Ground where he unveiled 450 four-wheelers and an equal number of motorcycles as part of the system, Mr Adhikari said the average emergency response time of the West Bengal Police was around 90 minutes compared to 10-15 minutes for the Kolkata Police, which has more personnel and vehicles.

“Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat respond to emergencies within six to ten minutes. Why can’t our state achieve this?” he asked police officials, urging them to work on faster responses.

“Today is just the beginning. Within a year, we will provide four motorcycles and four cars to every police station in the state,” he said, adding that the state cabinet had approved the recruitment of 1,500 drivers for the vehicles.

Mr. Adhikari also warned of strict action against anyone who assaults police personnel, asserting that the state government’s priority will be to maintain law and order and ensure security of the force.

Referring to the recent incident at Park Circus where stones were allegedly pelted on policemen and the attack on the police outpost in Asansol, he said no one would be able to take the law into their own hands.

“If any criminal or lawbreaker dares to lay hands on police personnel, the consequences will be severe,” he warned, adding that compensation has been sought from those involved in the vandalism at the Asansol base.

“I have passed two laws to strengthen the hands of the police: one to recover costs for damage to public property from offenders and the other to make preventive arrests,” Mr. Adhikari said, clarifying that while the first law has already been implemented, the second law currently remains under the Home Ministry’s consideration.

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Complaining about the previous TMC government, Mr Adhikari alleged that the police were under-equipped and unable to respond effectively to emergency calls from the public.

“Earlier, if someone called 100, there was no answer. The police were effectively reduced to a ‘Nidhiram Sardar’, without shield or sword,” he said in the Bengali term for a helpless figure to describe what he called the state of the unit under the earlier permit.

The CM reiterated the state’s plan to create a State Investigation Agency (SIA), a specialized intelligence and law enforcement agency modeled after the central National Investigation Agency (NIA).

The proposed agency is being set up to strengthen the internal security of West Bengal and will function as a state-level nodal body to conduct specialized investigations into terrorism, cross-border infiltration, anti-national activities, sabotage and organized crime networks.

“Thank you to Union Home Minister Amit Shah who during the meetings in Siliguri and Kolkata emphasized better coordination between police and BSF in guarding the border and the need to create SIA units in line with NIA,” Mr. Adhikari said.

The CM said plans were being drawn up to raise two Indian Reserve (IR) battalions after the assurance of funds from the Union Home Secretary.

Highlighting the changes initiated in the police administration within five months of his assumption of office, Mr. Adhikari said he had visited several police establishments, including the Barrackpore Police Commissionerate, Taratala and Bhavani Bhavan to review their functioning.

Initiatives included inspecting control rooms, improving traffic management and congratulating police personnel and fire service personnel for their life-saving services, he said.

Stressing the need to strengthen the state’s police capacity, Mr. Adhikari said that West Bengal currently has 155 police officers for every one lakh people, compared to 200 in Uttar Pradesh under Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

During the tenure of the previous government, the ratio was just 105 employees per 100,000 population, he claimed.

“Without adequate manpower, logistical support, modern equipment and strengthening of the cyber crime cell, it is not possible to fight legal battles or maintain law and order,” the CM said, stressing the need to strengthen the force to fulfill its administrative and operational duties.

The Chief Minister also highlighted the poor condition of police stations and said many lacked basic equipment and adequate maintenance.

Referring to his visits to the Watgunge and Ekbalpore police stations in Kolkata, he said the buildings looked almost a century old and lacked proper camera systems and fire extinguishers.

“All that has to change,” he said.

Praising the forces, Mr. Adhikari said senior officers, including DGP Siddhinath Gupta and IPS officer Javed Shamim, ensured that there was no bloodshed during the recent elections to the two assemblies.

The CM said the recruitment processes were transparent unlike the previous regime and announced that more than 11,000 constables would be appointed before Durga Puja.

“The recruitment was delayed by the previous government due to legal complications related to OBC reservation. The state government subsequently amended the relevant legislation in the assembly and deviated from its earlier stand to resolve the issue. Following the Calcutta High Court verdict in the case of Economically Weaker Section (EWS) candidates, Police Recruitment Board Chairman Niraj Kumar Singh has already released the list of shortlisted candidates,” Adhiri said.

The CM said he would personally attend the appointment program next Friday (October 16) to hand over appointment letters to the newly recruited constables.

Mr. Adhikari said his government has no tolerance for drug abuse and attacks on women and reiterated his commitment to ensure justice for the family of the doctor raped and murdered at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

Published – 10 Oct 2026 18:49 IST