After experimenting with posting senior officers in Police Zones and Ranges and streamline law and order and control crime, DGP Sulkhan Singh has now planned to merge Government Railway Police with Civil Police especially to ease financial burden of the department.
Hwever, some top GRP officers were unhappy with the move and claimed that the experiment, if done, would fail as the district police chiefs were already overburdened with maintaining law and order and supervising investigations.
"If the GRP was also added to their purview of work, they would only be burdened further. If the DGP was serious on abolishing the GRP and merging it with Civil Police, then it would be better if Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel were given free hand to deal with crime and law and order in railway premises. The Civil police chould then assist them if the RPF sought help in working out crimes," said an officer.
Sources said that the DGP has set up a committee under DG (Railways) with IG (law and order) and IG luccknow Range as it’s members. The committeee willl discuss and suggest how the GRP could be merged with Civil Police to ease working and ease financial burden of the department. The three members of the committee would visit Hyderabad, Mumbai, Bihar, Chennai, and Madhya Pradesh, to study the functioning there. After they submit their report, action would be taken by DGP in this regard.
To man 65 GRP stations along half a dozen Railway sectors, UP Police personnel from constable to Inspectors were sent on deputation. This unnecessary transfer put financial burden on the UP Police by way of transfer allowance and other expenses.
Sources claimed that the DGP plans to merge GRP with Civil police as the entire GRP was run by personnel originally from Civil Police.
They opined that after the merger, the GRP stations would also come under the district police in-charge so there will be no burden of transferring cops on deputation to Railways from Civil Police.