CBI conducts yoga camp for officers

Stress buster

To “shape up” the sleuths for taking up challenging assignments which require greater mental attitude than physical strength, CBI Director Ashwani Kumar is organising yogic workshops.

A thee-day day yoga camp was organised this week in the CBI headquarters. The CBI personnel were very enthusiastic and participated in the camp in big numbers. The CBI chief has included the health of CBI personnel as among the ten top priorities of the organisation. Dr Neha Singh—a disciple of yoga guru Ramdev—imparted  yoga exercises and taught practical lessons on “pranayam” to de-stress mind and body. The focus was on prevention of common problems and their cure by self exercises and correct knowledge.

The CBI Director has raised the bar of professional and personal skills for the investigators.

The new professional targets include successful prosecution of court cases; use of forensic techniques for on-the-spot investigation; inter-state and international cooperation in law enforcement; distance learning and on the job training for investigators and prosecutors; strengthening of legal and prosecution division and employing of technology and technical gadgets by field officers.

According to agency officials, mental and physical fitness may  help the cops develop the stamina to deal with the pressures from within and outside the organisation and stand up firmly.

Former CBI director Joginder Singh, however, thinks otherwise. “ Yoga has nothing to do with pressure. Doing yoga by CBI personnel is like ‘Gandhigiri.’ Yoga may help you stay calm but it cannot ward off political pressures,” says Singh who as CBI Director brought from Switzerland the Swiss Bank documents, which indicted  Italian Businessman Ottavio Quottrocchi in the Bofors pay off case. He says though the CBI is doing a good job, “it remains  a wing of  the government.” The CBI has to seek permission of the government to start enquiry against a government official in the rank of Joint-Secretary and above, he says debunking “the independence” of the agency.  

Apart from the highly controversial disproportionate assets cases on BSP president Mayawati and SP president Mulyam Singh Yadav, the CBI has recently undertaken investigations into the alleged double murder case against a prominent NCP leader in Maharashtra and a corruption case implicating CPM leader Pinarayi Vijayan in Kerala. 
“Pranayam” and other yogic exercises may not extricate the investigating agency from the politically injected stress, but could certainly undo some of  the mental strain in “the cloak and dagger job.”

The Union Home Ministry has also employed services of  yoga teachers for  stress management among the paramilitary personnel. More than 80,000 jawans and officials have been benefited by these camps.