Human Rights lessons for cops

IGNOU School of Law (SOL), in collaboration with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), has launched an Online Training Programme on Human Rights for Police Personnel. The five-day programme was inaugurated for the police academy personnel of Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh by NHRC Chairperson Justice K.G. Balakrishnan at the IGNOU Convention Centre on February 1

“This activity is an outcome of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between IGNOU and NHRC a few months ago. The main aim of this programme is to sensitise and spread awareness about human rights. With such a programme, IGNOU aims to bring down the rate of conflicts and crime in the society by creating awareness among police personnel,” said Vice Chancellor Prof V.N. Rajasekharan Pillai.

While delivering the inaugural address, Justice Balakrishnan said, “It is our basic duty to sensitise people and protect their human rights, and the police play a very important role in the society in maintaining the law and order. NHRC appreciates IGNOU’s efforts in this field. We have launched a basic programme for lower level police personnel in Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Haryana. The programme is currently available in Hindi and shall be translated into regional languages soon.

”The first basic programme was attended by the police personnel from police academies in Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. They had an online nteraction with the Chairperson and other members of the commission on human rights issues.

“Almost 60 to 80 percent of the police personnel are constables and subconstables and nearly 80 percent of them are just 10th pass. There is a need to make them aware about all the penal laws in the country, along with the legal knowledge,” SOL Director Prof K. Elumalai said.

On the first three days, participants will be taught all the six units i.e. two units each day, through interactive lectures by resource persons using multimedia tools. On the fourth and fifth day, interactive counselling sessions will be held, wherein all the participants and programme dinator/resource person ill interact with each other through the web-conferencing mode. The programme can be accessed as and when required, Prof Elumalai added.