<p>The orderly system in the police was introduced by the British in the late 19th century. An orderly is expected to help officers in maintenance and upkeep of uniform, answering telephone calls, attending to personal security and also run small errands.<br /><br /></p>.<p>A police officer is expected to be on duty 24X7 and to rush to scenes of crime and riots at short notice. Since the orderly is a trained uniformed person, he is meant to be a companion and help to the senior officer. The Karnataka Police Manual as well as those in other states prescribes the scale of orderlies for senior officers. <br /><br />While DGP and the additional DGP get six men, IGP gets four, DIG and SP get three, the deputy SP gets two and inspectors one. Some draw more than prescribed. Though the Manual says that orderlies must be taken from armed units, many civil police constables are also orderlies. These orderlies rarely attend drill and inspections and work at residences of senior officers.<br /><br />Over a period of time, orderlies began to be misused for cooking, washing, taking officer’s children to school, shopping for the officer’s family etc. An orderly thus became more of a menial servant. A few dec-ades ago, the minimum qualification prescribed for an armed police constable was seventh standard. Nowadays, almost every constable is a graduate and has joined the department with some aspirations. <br /><br />To him, performing orderly duty at the residence of a senior officer has become anathema and hence the demand for abolishing the orderly system was the most prominent during the recently fizzled-out police strike in Karnataka.<br /><br />This demand is not new. Since 2000, it has become louder throughout India. The second Administrative Reforms Commission (2005) and the 6th Pay Commission (2008) recommended the abolition of police orderly system. They question that when the Air Force and the Navy have abolished this system, why should the Army and the Police continue with it. <br /><br />In 2009, when constable Muralinath of Andhra Pradesh Police, employed as on orderly to an ADGP, died suspiciously, the demand reached a crescendo. The government responded by abolishing the system. In 2013, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home under Venkaiah Naidu recommended that since the orderly system affected the morale of the police personnel who are trained to do regular police jobs, it should be abolished. <br /><br />The Committee suggested issue of directions to all police forces not to use any police personnel as washer man, cook or peon. The Committee noted that there is a severe shortage of over five lakh trained police personnel in the country. <br /><br />The question now is why despite so much of resistance, the orderly system still continues. Most senior officers have come to depend on the orderly system as one of their important perquisites of service and do not want to let it go. Unlike others, a police orderly is highly disciplined and does his job without murmur, is punctual and keeps the family happy.<br /><br />Compensating officers<br />Some state governments decided to compensate senior police officers by way of additional allowances in lieu of orderlies. A senior officer was allowed to employ anyone of his choice and pay the servant from his allowances. It later turned out that not only the officers received the allowance but continued to employ constables in the name of visitor screening, security duty etc resulting in additional financial burden on the state.<br /><br />Hence, this problem has to be addressed differently. The Police Department can create a separate cadre of civilian orderlies (akin to peons in civilian department) and give them to senior officers. There is a cadre of Follower in State Reserve Police who does jobs like cooking, washing etc, who can be made orderlies relieving the constabulary for police duties. However, this will not result in abolition of the system.<br /><br />The best solution, according to me, is to outsource orderlies from private manpower supply agencies. They pay the minimum wages fixed by the government and their bill would be lesser than the cost incurred in employing constables. Besides, there will be no problem of promotion, seniority etc for the Department. This will relieve thousands of police personnel from doing menial jobs at the residence of the senior officers. <br /><br />The morale of both the constabulary and the senior officers will remain high. It will result in providing additional constabulary to perform regular police jobs. Care, however, needs to be taken that officers do not subvert this as was done elsewhere.<br /><br />(<em>The writer retired as Director General of Police, Karnataka</em>)<br /></p>
<p>The orderly system in the police was introduced by the British in the late 19th century. An orderly is expected to help officers in maintenance and upkeep of uniform, answering telephone calls, attending to personal security and also run small errands.<br /><br /></p>.<p>A police officer is expected to be on duty 24X7 and to rush to scenes of crime and riots at short notice. Since the orderly is a trained uniformed person, he is meant to be a companion and help to the senior officer. The Karnataka Police Manual as well as those in other states prescribes the scale of orderlies for senior officers. <br /><br />While DGP and the additional DGP get six men, IGP gets four, DIG and SP get three, the deputy SP gets two and inspectors one. Some draw more than prescribed. Though the Manual says that orderlies must be taken from armed units, many civil police constables are also orderlies. These orderlies rarely attend drill and inspections and work at residences of senior officers.<br /><br />Over a period of time, orderlies began to be misused for cooking, washing, taking officer’s children to school, shopping for the officer’s family etc. An orderly thus became more of a menial servant. A few dec-ades ago, the minimum qualification prescribed for an armed police constable was seventh standard. Nowadays, almost every constable is a graduate and has joined the department with some aspirations. <br /><br />To him, performing orderly duty at the residence of a senior officer has become anathema and hence the demand for abolishing the orderly system was the most prominent during the recently fizzled-out police strike in Karnataka.<br /><br />This demand is not new. Since 2000, it has become louder throughout India. The second Administrative Reforms Commission (2005) and the 6th Pay Commission (2008) recommended the abolition of police orderly system. They question that when the Air Force and the Navy have abolished this system, why should the Army and the Police continue with it. <br /><br />In 2009, when constable Muralinath of Andhra Pradesh Police, employed as on orderly to an ADGP, died suspiciously, the demand reached a crescendo. The government responded by abolishing the system. In 2013, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home under Venkaiah Naidu recommended that since the orderly system affected the morale of the police personnel who are trained to do regular police jobs, it should be abolished. <br /><br />The Committee suggested issue of directions to all police forces not to use any police personnel as washer man, cook or peon. The Committee noted that there is a severe shortage of over five lakh trained police personnel in the country. <br /><br />The question now is why despite so much of resistance, the orderly system still continues. Most senior officers have come to depend on the orderly system as one of their important perquisites of service and do not want to let it go. Unlike others, a police orderly is highly disciplined and does his job without murmur, is punctual and keeps the family happy.<br /><br />Compensating officers<br />Some state governments decided to compensate senior police officers by way of additional allowances in lieu of orderlies. A senior officer was allowed to employ anyone of his choice and pay the servant from his allowances. It later turned out that not only the officers received the allowance but continued to employ constables in the name of visitor screening, security duty etc resulting in additional financial burden on the state.<br /><br />Hence, this problem has to be addressed differently. The Police Department can create a separate cadre of civilian orderlies (akin to peons in civilian department) and give them to senior officers. There is a cadre of Follower in State Reserve Police who does jobs like cooking, washing etc, who can be made orderlies relieving the constabulary for police duties. However, this will not result in abolition of the system.<br /><br />The best solution, according to me, is to outsource orderlies from private manpower supply agencies. They pay the minimum wages fixed by the government and their bill would be lesser than the cost incurred in employing constables. Besides, there will be no problem of promotion, seniority etc for the Department. This will relieve thousands of police personnel from doing menial jobs at the residence of the senior officers. <br /><br />The morale of both the constabulary and the senior officers will remain high. It will result in providing additional constabulary to perform regular police jobs. Care, however, needs to be taken that officers do not subvert this as was done elsewhere.<br /><br />(<em>The writer retired as Director General of Police, Karnataka</em>)<br /></p>
