The United Nations, as a part of its peacekeeping mission, recently held a two-week United Nations Chiefs of Police Summit 2018, in Beijing. And Santosh Mehra, the Additional Director General of Police of Telangana and Director of the Telangana State Police Academy, secured the distinction of being the first and only Indian to have been invited to participate in the summit.
Talking about the conference that acted as a platform for Chiefs of Police from nearly 180 countries to come together and chart a vision for the police components deployed on UN peacekeeping missions, he says, “It’s a great honour to be a part of such an elite and esteemed group.”
Mehra is the only police officer in India who has a Master’s Degree in Peacekeeping and Conflict Resolution, which he was awarded by the University of Queensland, Brisbane. In addition to having extensive experience as Inspector General of Police in the Border Security Force, he has also held a senior position for the duration of a year in a UN peacekeeping operation in Angola. And these distinctions are what earned him an invite to the conference.
Santosh Mehra with national police chiefs from other countries
“This summit provides a great platform for National Chiefs of Police of various countries to discuss the complementary and mutual benefits of peace operations and national policing in addressing challenges in the maintenance of peace and security,” Mehra says, adding, “Effective policing starts with good police leaders, so this summit is key for the UN police to be able to better serve and protect the populations of the places to which they are deployed.”
The Lucknow-born officer states that for him, the highlight of the experience was the opportunity to learn about various trans-national policing techniques. He explains, “We understood and shared policing methods that would work best to counter security threats before they transcend borders. We discussed how we could effectively deliver peace and stability, and positively impact the lives and communities of people affected by crises.”
And he adds that some of the strategies discussed, although a tad expensive, can be effectively implemented in India too. “Protests by angry mobs during a civil war are a familiar sight. To better handle the crowd, we can use non-lethal ammunition — a combination of chilli powder and tear gas, which causes a burning sensation in the eyes and leave marks on the skin. These marks will enable us to identify the protesters later,” he says, adding, “We can also use some soft kinetic projectiles (rubber bullets) that will cause minor injuries to protesters, which will be enough to deter them.”
In conclusion, Mehra adds that he may have more opportunities to do the nation proud on an international platform.
“The UN may utilise my services and ask me to head one of their police wings (at the Commissioner level), to implement a peacekeeping operation,” he says.
