Witness protection law needed: DG&IGP

Addressing the gathering at Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) on Monday, Ramesh said the move for the witness protection programme similar to the one in the US, needed to come from the Centre.

The DG&IGP said there was a need for a research wing, which could be run on Public Private Partnership (PPP) model involving industry and the police department.

"The research wing can look into white collar crimes, sensitisation programmes for police personnel and so on, to ultimately improve the quality of life of citizens," he said.

Ramesh said there was a need to train citizens, especially in schools and colleges, and train them to be aware and alert. "We need to use audio-visual modes to ensure that people know what do to in a situation. It should be like first aid training," he said.

On the common notion that crime had increased in the City, Ramesh said talking on crime was like discussing cricket. There were many self-appointed experts but crime was a complex issue.

He said that the benchmarks to measure increase in crime was to look at the number of crimes in proportion to population, area, industries, student population and tourist population.

Prison study

Ramesh said that a study had been conducted in Parappana Agaraha prison between 2008-2010 to look into the nexus between crime, substance use and mental health. Conducted by the Prisons Department and Nimhans, 5,000 prisoners took part in the study which was launched in January, this year.

"A manual has been brought out to post the study, which will be distributed across the country. Training for the prison staff was also conducted based on the findings of the study," he said.