The Bureau of Police Research & Development (BPR&D)

Introduction

The Bureau of Police Research & Development (BPR&D) is an apex body committed to training, modernization, and research for Indian police and also correctional administration. It was formed in the year 1970 under the Ministry of Home Affairs, giving a new orientation to the then existing Police Research and Advisory Council (1966) to identify and cater to the challenges and needs of the Indian Police. With a vision of promoting appropriate technology in police work, it was also mandated to keep abreast of the latest developments in the fields of science and technology, both in India and outside India. Over the years, the BPR&D has also been charged with the responsibility of regulating the level and scope of training delivered by the universities of the States and Central Police Organizations.

The tasks of the Bureau of Police Research & Development are essentially comprised of the five following strategic challenges. Firstly, rethinking justice through all dimensions and the processes that create communities that are just and fair. Secondly, understanding the chain of crime and breaking its cycle by analysing and testing research-based interventions. Thirdly, understanding the relationship between crime and its social context is crucial. Fourthly, develop the technologies and tools that practitioners require. And lastly, broadening perspectives through an international and cross-disciplinary approach.

The BPR & D has been entrusted with helping the Ministry of Home Affairs and others set standards, quality requirements (QRs), etc., for various kinds of equipment and goods related to infrastructure. In more recent times, the BPR & D has also been given the duty of coordinating and anchoring the activities of the National Police Mission.

History and Structure

The Bureau was established with the following two divisions, initially with a well laid out charter of duties[1].

1. Research, Statistics, and Publication
2. Development
3. Training is crucial and expanding demand to increase the proficiency of the nation’s police forces. The Gore-Committee, which the Indian government established in 1971, examined police training issues and made numerous suggestions. In order to implement its recommendations, the Indian government established two divisions under the Bureau in addition to the Training Division in 1973.
4. Over time, the forensic science services provided by the Development Division developed, and in 1983, a distinct Directorate of Forensic Sciences under the BPR & D was established.
5. Further, in 1995, the Government of India decided to give the BPR & D responsibility for matters connected to correctional administration work so that the Bureau could tackle difficulties with prisons and the implementation of perceived prison reforms in a coordinated manner. This configuration uses the available personnel resources to function.
6. The National Police Mission was established by the government of India in 2008 under the administrative supervision of BPR & D with the goal of transforming the nation’s police forces into effective tools for maintaining internal security and addressing future challenges by providing them with the necessary organisational, intellectual, and material resources.

Research Division

The duties and responsibilities of the research division are the analysis and study of crimes of general nature affecting the police and others. This includes the trends and causes of crime, preventive measures of crime, their effectiveness and relationship with the same. Organization, strength, administration, methods; procedures and techniques of police forces and their modernization; the Police Act and manuals; improvements in investigation methods; the utility and results of introducing scientific aids and punishment; the inadequacy of laws; juvenile delinquency, Police Uniforms, badges, medals, decorations, colours, flags, police drill, warrant of procedure etc.

Furthermore, the research division works towards supporting extramural research, processing and coordinating research projects, and assisting state police research programmes; work relating to the Standing Committee on Police Research, Police Science Congress, and other conferences and seminars relating to the study of police problems; participation in social defence and crime prevention programmes; and participation in the work of the United Nations in the field of prevention of crime and treatment of offenders.

 Correctional Administration

The responsibilities of the correctional administration include analysis and research of jail data and issues of a general nature influencing the prison system, incorporating and sharing pertinent data with the states in the area of correctional administration, The coordination of research studies carried out by RICAs and other academic and research institutes in the field of correctional administration, as well as the creation of criteria for the conduct of research studies and surveys in conjunction with state governments, In order to examine training programmes while taking into account the evolving social climate, the development of new scientific methodologies, and other relevant factors, and to create a standard training module including course materials like syllabi and curricula, For providing the prison personnel with training in the field of correctional administration at various levels, publishing reports, newsletters, bulletins, and creating audio-visual aids, etc. in the administration of the corrections sector and to set up an Advisory Committee to guide the work relating to Correctional Administration.

Development Division

The responsibilities of the Development Division are to review the performance of various types of equipment used by the police forces in India and develop new equipment in the following fields:

1. Arms and Ammunition.
2. Riot Control Equipment.
3. Traffic Control Equipment
4. Police Transport and
5. Miscellaneous Scientific Instruments and Investigational Aids[2]

Moreover, the work includes liaisons with national laboratories, various scientific organisations, and institutions, as well as public and private sector initiatives in the aforementioned fields; coordination of development programmes and encouragement of homegrown production of police equipment; and application of computer technology in various facets of police work.

Training Division

The duties and responsibilities of the training division incorporates reviewing from time to time the arrangements for Police training and the needs of the country in this field in the changing social conditions and the introduction of scientific techniques in training and in police work and to formulate and coordinate training policies and programmes in the field of police administration[3] and management, supervising the working of three central detective training schools, situated at Chandigarh, Kolkata and Hyderabad, evaluating training programmes with a view to securing such standardisation and consistency in the training arrangements, such as the courses, syllabi, and curricula for different levels throughout the States and Union Territories, as may be appropriate, and to propose adjustments and changes that may be deemed essential from time to time to meet new challenges and problems[4], preparing, in coordination with the police training institutions, standard manuals, textbooks, pamphlets, lecture notes, case studies, practical exercises and other educative literature for use in these institutions, standardising equipment for training and training aids and to arrange for their production and supply to the various training institutions, distributing relevant literature to officers by inspectors general/DIsG (Training) in the States in order to familiarise them with training principles and to increase training consciousness among the upper levels, acting as a clearing house for information relating to Syllabi, methods of training, teaching aids, training programmes and literature on various aspects of police work etc from India and abroad and hosting brief seminars on various topics of police training as well as the annual symposium of the heads of police training institutions[5]

Administration Division

The responsibilities of the Administration Division are that: all financial powers/concerns being handled by the Head of the Department are processed in the admin division; all personnel matters of officers and staff in the HQrs and outlying units; purchasing of equipment and financial sanctions of all the Divisions of BPR&D and outlying units, which are sanctioned under the authority of the Head of the Department, coordination between all the Divisions of BPR&D, and administrative matters of the Central Detective Training Schools, Chandigarh, Kolkata, and Hyderabad[6] 

National Police Mission Division

The mission will have a strong emphasis on strengthening the skills and competency levels of the police force, effective decentralisation and delegation of authority, and empowerment of the police force at all levels. Since “Police” and “Law & Order” are state subjects under the Indian Constitution, the State and U.T. governments must take the lead in implementing the necessary police reforms and transformations. The mission will aim to turn the nation’s police forces into effective tools for maintaining internal security. For this reason, the NPM will seek to achieve the required goals in conjunction with the state governments. The Mission shall encourage networking of police organisations with educational and industrial forums for taking up research for improving the policing approach[7]

Conclusion

The Government of India’s goal of modernising police forces led to the establishment of the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) on August 28, 1970. It has grown into a complex consultancy organisation. Research, Development, Training, Correctional Administration, and the National Police Mission are its five current divisions. Over the years, the BPR&D has also been charged with the responsibility of regulating the level and scope of training delivered by the universities of the States and Central Police Organizations. Additionally, it aids in the modernization of the states’ state prison and law enforcement systems. The Ministry of Home Affairs has entrusted the BPR&D with assisting in the establishment of standards, quality requirements (QRs), etc., for various types of infrastructure-related machinery and items. In more recent times, the National Police Mission’s activities have been assigned to the BPR&D for coordination and anchoring.

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References:

[1] MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS, Government of India New Delhi, FUNCTIONS AND ACTIVITIES OF BUREAU OF POLICE RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT, BPRD, https://bprd.nic.in/WriteReadData/userfiles/file/201604280325396684295File1199.pdf.

[2] Id.

[3] Id.

[4] Id.

[5] Id.

[6] Id.

[7] Id.