Officials said an Office and Management (O&M) survey for the recruitment has already been finalized and forwarded to the Ministry of Finance (MoF). “The recruitment process will begin once approval from the finance ministry comes,” said a senior official at the Home Ministry. [break]
Currently, there are 3,457 women personnel in the Nepal Police which has a total strength of 60,130, including two DIGs, five SSPs, three SPs, 18 DSPs, 43 Inspectors, 142 Sub-Inspectors, 190 ASI, 639 head constables, 2,289 constables and 126 followers.
Concluding that poor representation of women in the police force was one of the reasons behind violence against them, a committee headed by the chief secretary last year recommended the recruitment of some 2,200 additional women personnel. However, the plan could not materialize as the MoF did not give its nod.
Recruiting additional women personnel is one of the components of the Home Administration Strengthening Plan unveiled by Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Bijaya Gachchhadar. “We are hopeful the proposal will get MoF nod this time,” said a senior official at the Home Ministry.
Women rights activist Sapana Pradhan Malla, who worked as advisor to the Committee on Violence Against Women under the Prime Minister´s Office back in 2010, has lauded the government´s initiative. “We had proposed recruiting additional women to ensure there are women equipped with special knowledge and expertise at the women´s cells to deal with cases related to violence against women,” she said, adding that the proposal was first made by the Madhav Nepal government.
Pradhan Malla argued that higher representation of women in the police can also help curb the incidence of violence against women personnel by their male counterparts. “Women police face different problems due to lack of adequate women personnel in the force,” she said. “Adequate representation of women can help address the problem of violence against women within the police organization.”
Recruitment of women in government security agencies including the police was nomimal until the political change of 2006. Representation of women in security agencies increased considerably after the government adopted a policy of reservations for women in the recruitment process, amid calls by women´s interest groups for at least 33 percent women´s participation in all state structures.
Govt planning vacancies for six more SPs
The Home Ministry is planning to create an additional six vacancies for SPs. A proposal has already been forwarded to MoF for its approval, according to Home Ministry officials. This will bring the number of SPs in the police to 128.
The proposal was made as per a ministerial decision to depute SP level officers as chiefs of the Regional Traffic Police Offices in the five development regions, currently headed by DSPs.
Likewise, the Human Rights Cell at Nepal Police Headquarters will be headed by an SP once the proposal is approved.
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