"Zero tolerance for criminals," says Uttarakhand DGP Abhinav Kumar

Dehradun (Uttarakhand) [India], September 11 : Uttarakhand Director of Police (DGP) Abhinav Kumar said on Wednesday that the police is going to take a zero-tolerance policy for crimes regarding looting, dacoity, and drug smuggling in the state. He also addressed the changes carried out in the police department after a three-hour marathon meeting with top officials to address the law and order situation in the state.
"If any serious crime such as dacoity happens in the state, then we would take strict action against the criminals. There is no need to be like 'friendly police' with such criminals in the state. Anyone who comes from outside the state to loot or do other serious crimes, then we would answer them with a bullet. We have seen in Uttar Pradesh too how there is strict action taken against such crimes; there is a zero-tolerance policy for such criminals," said Abhinav Kumar while speaking to ANI.
He also highlighted that the police is taking strict action against the drug suppliers in the state.
"The people who are supplying the hard drugs in the state, like smack or any chemical drugs, there is a need for looking to stop the supply and do a strict investigation on the kingpins. On the drugs, I have also told that we would need to increase our forensic capabilities to understand what kind of drugs are coming into the state, as certain deadly chemicals can be mixed and endanger people," Kumar added.
The DGP said that Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had spoken about the law and order situation in the state after multiple civil society groups raised certain concerns.
"For the last 2-3 weeks, some concern and some reaction were expressed from many places in the media and from all the civil societies regarding the situation of crime and law and order. The Chief Minister, since he is also our Home Minister, expressed concern directly to me on this matter, and he gave a little reaction in this regard. With the approval of the Chief Minister, some extensive changes were made in the police department," said the DGP.
He further mentioned that many officials, including Superintendent of Police of various districts had been transferred, and changes to the intelligence branch were also made.
"At the headquarters level, we also transferred SPs of many districts and after that, our new team which was formed in the police department, there was a change in intelligence in the low branch at the headquarters level. We also made certain changes in the traffic department. In the law and order department, we have given charge to a new Inspector General of Police. After the new SPs have taken charge of their respective districts, we will do a meeting with them to address the concerns of crime, law and order in the state," he added.
Earlier on September 4, CM Dhami inspected the police headquarters in Dehradun and took stock of the women's safety helpline operated from the police headquarters and various activities being conducted by the police.
The DGP had also directed intensified foot patrols across the state for effective crime prevention and strengthening of law enforcement efforts to create a secure environment and foster public confidence in safety measures.