In a detailed interview with Sweta Bharti of Bureaucrats India, Kabra, currently Inspector General of Police (IGP) Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, said: “Delivering justice gives me utmost satisfaction. It is the one place where you are in direct contact with the people. Once you help someone, especially those belonging to the middle class or lower class, the happiness it gives is unparalleled. Many times they come back to thank us. It feels so good! This job gives you ample opportunity to help people.” Here are edited excerpts from the interview:

How has been your journey so far from the day you aspired to be a Civil Servant to date?

I was born and brought up in Nagpur. My father was a mining engineer. My mother was not very well educated but she wanted her kids to be very well educated. Right from my childhood, I was a bright student and my parents wanted me to join the Indian Civil Services. I did my Class X and Class XII from Nagpur and Chemical Engineering from Laxminarayan Institute of Technology, Nagpur. Engineering was my backup plan. I always thought that if I won’t qualify for the Civil Services, then I will become an entrepreneur but now I think I wouldn’t have been able to do much (Smiles) Kuchh Chhota Mota Industry Laga Leta!

After my graduation, I and my friends Sandeep Dongre and Bhupesh took a train to Delhi in January 1996. Sandeep’s father’s acquaintance arranged for our stay in Karol Bagh. I joined a coaching institute. All of us passed the prelims. I chose geography for mains because my friend Rupesh chose that subject. Then we shifted to Mukherjee Nagar to prepare for mains. I qualified Mains and prepared for the interview and got AIR 85. I was selected for the Indian Police Service (IPS). I did my training. Training changes you completely. It teaches you swimming, trekking, horse-riding and a lot more. After training, I was allotted Madhya Pradesh cadre. I was posted in the Sub Division of Bhatapara. During my posting at Bhatapara, my cadre got divided and I was allotted to Chhattisgarh cadre. Then I was sent to Bijapur, then to Dhamtari where I received a lot of love from the people. I was one of the last SPs to be removed after the government was changed. Then I was shifted to Mahasamund, then to Raigarh, to Durg and to Raipur. In Raipur I continued till IG level. Then I was transferred to Surguja Range and again to Raipur, to Durg Range, to Bilaspur, again to Raipur and again to Bilaspur.

Did you have any difficulty in adapting to your new life?

No, not at all! I was a football player. I was an NCC cadet. I am still a very outdoor person. I like gym, swimming and cycling. But yes, for some people it is difficult but our mentors trained us well. They have trained so many people that they know how to work with different kinds of people. Most of the IPS officers are very studious. They had never done any physical activities. Initially a few people have difficulty in doing even parades, but by the end of training you learn so much. Training period gives you so many friends and memories to cherish for lifetime!

Which aspect of your job do you enjoy the most?

Firstly, delivering justice. Secondly, it is the one place where you are in direct contact with people. Once you help someone, especially those belonging to the middle class or lower class, the happiness it gives is unparalleled. Many times they come back to thank us. It feels so good! This job gives you ample opportunities to help the people. On a lighter note, if I work till late in the night, I wake up late too!

Has the negative image of police in India ever come in the way of your duty?

It happens. Even my parents are not very open to the idea of going to the police station. That is the case with many. If we need any information from the general public, they don’t come forward, because they fear the police and judicial system. They feel that if they give a statement, they will be caught in the judicial system. General perception about the police is bad. I see so many people posting negative comments about us. I try defending police whenever I can, but it is tough for us.

Sometimes expectations of people are overwhelming. Aren’t?

No, we are part of the delivery mechanism, which is the front of the government. The work that we do and the kind of expectations people have is very fair. People, especially youngsters want a more efficient system, less of red-tapism, more proactive administration and we need to fulfill their aspirations. The way the government functions sometimes, it is not easy to do so. But there is a lot of space in the system that allows you to experiment with anything, which will have a positive impact on the people. There are numerous examples where IAS and IPS officers have taken initiatives to help the people. With social media coming up even the political bosses also like these initiatives. I have seen it in my state. They support and encourage such initiatives.

During Covid-19 pandemic you used social media to help the distressed. Tell us about that initiative.

During the first lockdown after Janata curfew, it so happened that I found some family members who were totally lost. They couldn’t find any trains as trains had been discontinued. They were hungry and in a state of total despair. So I got food from my home and gave it to them. While I was roaming around, I found many such families who didn’t have food. So I called my SPs. We roped in NGOs and started distributing dry ration and cooked food. That was a start. After that each of the patrolling units had enough ration and anyone in need was helped.

Second major issue was the migrants. There were people who were in other states and needed rations. We had opened a helpline number. My office, the Labour Department office, coordinated with several officers to help those in need.

The third issue was the movement of migrant labourers. Many people coming to Chhattisgarh were given food and vehicles. Many people were stuck outside Chhattisgarh. The government was running trains. We gave them free bus rides. Other than that, we helped them get passes. We coordinated with NGOs. At the entry points, we gave them food, slippers, anything and everything they needed. We delivered life saving medicines to the doorstep of many people. Children, who needed medical attention, were taken to hospitals.

Needless to say, social media helped us connect with the people. We had people contacting us from across the State. I along withfew of my good friends like IPS Arun Bothra and IPS Sanjay Kumar had started helping those in need anywhere and everywhere in the country.

You recently started an initiative Cyber Mittan. Tell us about that.

Mittan means friend. We are involving the people at the ground level to create awareness about cyber security. We are using social media and media and our target is to reach out to 20 lakh people and we want to educate them about frauds like ATM fraud, UPI fraud and any other digital fraud. We try to create awareness about how they should share private information with others. We are roping in movie stars, locals to reach out to the maximum number of people. This is not the end. We will continue doing this in the future as well.

You were posted in Maoist affected zone for a long time. Was it difficult to function in those areas?

Maoism has to be handled with two initiatives -- one is development initiatives and second is security initiative. The security forces need to dominate those areas and simultaneously development activities have to take place. We need to involve ourselves with locals. For police Maoism affected areas are very difficult, especially areas like Sukma, Dantewada, Bijawara, and Narayanpur. We have to be alert every time. They blow off vehicles. Forces are caught in ambushes. Of late we have given a lot of training to the District Reserve Guard, local forces. So things have been good. There are a few places we need to move more inside in the coming days. I think we will be able to push them further and hit them hard.

The fondest memory of your service?

I had a career where I was continuously kept on a move. I went to a Maoist affected zone, then to a better, third was a bigger, fourth a better and fifth was the best in Chhattisgarh and I could continue as IG in that place. Most of them were successful. I don’t have an answer to this. Every time we could deliver the best service, like if some cases were quite old and we could solve those cases, it gave a lot of happiness. People were always very nice everywhere I was posted. Helping the people whenever I can has been the best part.

Tips for those who wish to join the Civil Services.

First, know your calibre. Know your strengths and weaknesses and then decide which exam you want to go for, be it UPSC, state services, SSC or other competitive exams. Then fix a particular amount of time you will give to this like one year, two years, and three years. Give your best in this time. Second you need to understand what your forte is; which subject you will do well in? Will you enjoy reading that subject? Which subjects are trending, align all this. Third, choose study material properly. The UPSC examination is more about understanding. You need to have in-depth knowledge of subjects. Group study can help a lot.