Commander for Regional Police Division 4 ‘C’ Mr. Khali Pareshram said he is very appreciative of the support and feedback received thus far from the residents within his Division as this has played a significant part in the overall improvement in service delivery to the communities.
In a sit-down interview with the PRO Stan Gouveia, at the Regional Division Headquarters, Pareshram said that prior to the Commissioner’s recent visit, his ranks were constantly engaged with the residents in an effort to strengthen the bonds of friendship and mutual trust between the police and the public.
That relationship, according to the Commander, has ‘tightened’, following the Top Cop’s charge and as a consequence, youths of various villages along the East Coast have expressed their interest in joining the various Youth Groups and Scout Groups.
The Commander also said that “it is a critical step taken by the residents to allow their children to work with the Police as they can now see the fruits of the work done. In Addition to that, there are several youths involved in cricket, athletics, and football as our engagements continue to increase since our last engagement.”
When asked about parents or guardians being hesitant to allow their children to be a part of the activities, the Commander said that it is the job of the Police to give Service to the community despite negative remarks about indoctrinating the youths.
As it relates to the Force’s Strategic Plan 2022-2026, Mr. Pareshram highlighted that there have been several MOUs, MOAs and other agreements with Stakeholders and Agencies to assist in the development of Police officers to better understand and function in their capacity.
With the evolution of the Force, at a very fast rate, the “ranks must work as one with the various stakeholders and agencies”.
He added that with the emerging infrastructural development in the region, the expansion of new housing schemes and industrial areas, systems must be put in place to positively deal with challenges that may arise, and because of this, there is a continued push in working collaboratively and building strong partnerships to have and maintain safer communities. He noted that for each community that he visited, the residents have asked for more police presence.
According to Mr. Pareshram, his office is constantly communicated to by members of the public whenever a suspicious or unusual activity is happening in their community. “The residents have been cooperating and fully supportive of the necessary initiatives that have been put in place as we continue to solidify partnerships,” he posited.
According to Pareshram, “one can positively say that the actions of the Residents shows that the gap of trust is improving between the police”.
*Operations in the Community*
“As it relates to Police Operations in the Division, we are no longer doing ‘cordon and search’ operations like we used to do in the past, instead, our operations are more targeted and intelligence-led,” noted Mr. Pareshram.
He said intelligence gathering and using information technology have now allowed the ranks to be sure of a particular area before conducting operations.
Nevertheless, the Commander took the opportunity to implore upon residents to continue to exercise patience and cooperate with the ranks for the benefit of everyone.
The 27-minute interview was part of a Divisional visit by the Public Relations Officer and ranks from the Corporate Communications Unit (CCU), in an effort to fact-find and follow up on the activities of the Police in the Region, following their highlights on the Police and You programme during the month of April.
(Report by Corporal Joy Noel)
