Play safe: Rise in cops guarding VIPs in some states

The number of policemen guarding VIPs and others is shooting up in some states despite a decrease in the number of VIPs getting security cover for more than six months, a latest government report has said.

Overall, the number of ministers, MPs, MLAs, judges and bureaucrats among others getting security has slid to 17,468 in 2017 from 20,828 in 2016, registering a 16.13% decline.

The number of police personnel giving security cover to VIPs marginally decreased from 56,900 in 2016 to 56,553 in 2017, according to the Data on Police Organisations (as on 1 January, 2018) released by Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) recently.

However, in states like Karnataka, Assam, Maharashtra, Haryana and Punjab, the number of police personnel deployed to guard VIPs is on the rise.

Uttar Pradesh had the highest share with 94.21% or 1,791 VIPs losing security cover in 2017.

There were 1,901 VIPs in UP who got security in 2016 but the next year saw the number jumping to a low of 110. It also resulted in a decrease in the deployment of police personnel from 4,681 in 2016 to 1,803 in 2017.

Assam, on the other hand, had a different story to tell. While the number of VIPs with security cover in Assam rose from 1,170 to 1,323, the police personnel's figure rose by a whopping three-fold increase -- from 1,170 in 2016 to 4,153 the next year.

In Karnataka, too, there was an increase in the number of VIPs with security cover as well as the police personnel deployed. The number of VIPs rose from 456 to 561 while the police numbers rose from 678 to 1,446. The number of police personnel deployed for security cover is around five times more than what is sanctioned -- the sanctioned strength was 260 while 1,446 were in place in 2017.

The same was the case with several states. In Punjab, where the number of VIPs with security cover rose from 1,852 to 2,344, the number of police personnel rose from 5,315 to 7,324, which is above the sanctioned strength of 5,315.

In Maharashtra, the number of police personnel deployed for security duty of VIPs rose from 961 to 2,418 with the number of VIPs rising from 74 to 352. However, the number of personnel deployed is lower than the sanctioned strength of 3,946.

Number of Police Personnel deployed for giving protection

States	Security Cover for Ministers/MPs/MLAs/ Judges/Bureaucrats, etc (2016/2017)	Number of Police Personnel deployed for giving protection (2016/2017)
Uttar Pradesh	1901 / 110	4,681 / 1,803
Punjab	1,852 / 2,344	5,315 / 7,324
Assam	1,170 / 1,323	1,401 / 4,153
Maharashtra	74 / 352	961 / 2,418
Madhya Pradesh	851 / 402	860 / 906
Karnataka	456 / 561	678 / 1,446
All India	20,828 / 17,468	56,900 / 56,553