National Police Commemoration Day: Meet The Gutsy Women Police Officers Of India!

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When Kiran Bedi became the first female Indian Police Service officer, the whole country went gaga over her.

And it’s been more than four decades, several female police officers have followed her steps and are changing the way we imagine women officers in Indian Police. On the occasion of National Police Commemoration Day, Infano introduces you to a few of the women police officers whose actions inspired many of us!

Aparna Lavakumar

When the Senior Civil Police Officer (SCPO) of Irinjalakuda, Thrissur met a student of Class 5 during one of her awareness camps at a local school, she was revealed that the boy was a cancer survivor. The kid lost his hair to chemotherapy and was trying to come to terms with his bald appearance and was ridiculed by his classmates for the same.

A few days later, she was spotted in a beauty salon chopping her hair off entirely. She donated her hair to an NGO which prepares wigs for cancer survivors. But that was not the only thing — her main agenda was to normalise the baldness which society often perceives with mockery.

“Going bald can be severely traumatic for children with cancer, who are already battling for life at such a nascent age. I wanted to support them by proving that baldness is not a matter of shame, earlier, I had cut off my hair partially to donate for the cause. This time I felt like having a full-fledged tonsure to stand in solidarity with the patients,” she said in an interview with TBI.

Although as per the Kerala Police’s uniform regulations, officers are not allowed to shave their heads. But, the then Thrissur police chief made an exception in Aparna’s case due to her laudable gesture.

Nazia Khan

The recipient of several National and State Awards, Khan is known for her bravery and social work. She was appointed as a Special Police Officer of UP Police at the age of 18. The young officer has also won the national bravery award earlier for taking on a drug and gambling ring in Agra.

Anjana Choudhary & Rekha Mishra

A Railway Protection Force (RPF) Officer, Anjana is often found around Borivali railway station on Mumbai’s Western line. She is generally seen patrolling the station platforms to spot children who might be in trouble.

Another RPF officer Rekha patrols around Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) railway station and spots kids wandering around the platforms to help.

The duo has managed to rescue over 600 children so far. Most of these children were either kidnapped, became victims of child trafficking or ran away from their homes. Mishra, the 2014 batch officer, has rescued over 400 children single-handedly. Their admiration got them the nickname ‘Mother India’.

Sonia Singh

When the Nagaland Police felt that the local residents were more scared of them rather than trusting, they decided to change this perception with ‘Police Ke Pathshala’ — an initiative aiming to bring the student community and police closer.

This initiative was led by Sonia Singh, Inspector General of Police (Range), who took the responsibility of conducting these sessions at schools and colleges personally. The primary objective was to change the perception of the student community for the police, but it was not limited only to that.

“We are looking to build trust by raising their awareness about procedures of law and criminal acts like domestic violence, rape, sexual harassment, cyberstalking, revenge porn and drug abuse, etc. This is about building trust with them so that they can share any vital information with the police without any hesitation,” Sonia said.

M Deepika

The IPS Officer behind the implementation of Andhra Pradesh’s Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, ‘Disha’, M Deepika started at the rank of Superintendent of Police (SP) in the Disha Cell created within the state’s Crime Investigation Department (CID).

“The government is appointing special public prosecutors to help with the drafting of chargesheets, improving the capabilities of forensic labs, hiring quality medical doctors, particularly gynaecologists since we have trouble getting timely reports and enlisting quality cyber experts. It will include local women residents and a Mahila Mitra coordinator from our side, and bring to the notice of the police any serious crimes against women,” says the 2014 batch IPS officer.

Dr Suman D Pennekar

Hailing from the Beed village of Belagavi, this IPS Officer rescued over 4,300 people stranded at the devastating floods of Kodagu. Previously, the team led by this fearless SP arrested the kingpin of the timber mafia, Kallichanda Noban, and seized timber worth Rs 1 crore following a raid on his property.

Despite the unlimited warnings from the mafia, she enforced the rule of banning the felling and transportation of trees. Dr Suman is also a qualified Ayurvedic doctor who strives at improving the living standards of rural India.

On this day, Infano also salutes and pays tributes to the policemen and healthcare professionals who, being the frontline soldiers, lost their lives on duty. We owe you! #InfanoWomen

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In India, there is a pretty good chance that you might end up dead in your mother’s womb!

Or if you are privileged enough to survive, there’s a probability that you might not see this world for long!!

India is the only large country in the world where more baby girls die than baby boys. The gender differential in child survival is currently 11 per cent, states UNICEF. Statistics reflect community attitudes with fewer hospital admissions for girls than boys, showing that parents sometimes give less attention to newborn girls. In 2017 alone, 1,50,000 fewer girls were admitted to Special Newborn Care Units (SNCUs) than boys.
Source

While this number might not look relevant to you, let’s not forget that only a mere fraction of the womenfolk are tagged privileged in India. And that’s also mainly because of the financial freedom they have got.

This might not seem relatable, but study suggests that financially independent women are more aware of their rights, lead a better life, and contribute more to the next generation. Financial freedom gives women the ability to control their life and claim their rights.

But what happens to women who are not financially secure?

A woman cannot walk out of an abusive marriage if she is not financially independent. A woman might not be able to contribute to her child’s study because of this reason. From better health to controlled life, insurances, savings, household expenditure, parents’ expenses, to whatnot, the answer is subjective!

Here are the anecdotes that I received from three women who are financially independent. Let’s understand what financial freedom means to them!

Meena Devi

“I grew up in a poor family, was married off early to an alcoholic man. While our ration requirements were taken care of with his daily wages, we couldn’t pay our child’s school fees. When he had to skip school for a whole year, I decided to work. I was not literate, so I started working as a house helper for a few families. Initially, it was hard. My salary was meagre. But I worked every day, did multiple shifts and eventually saved enough to send my son to a good school.

It’s been 15 years since I started working. My son is now a graduate. He also managed to crack the Indian Railways exam. Now he asks me not to work and live a good life. But am I not living a good life? Is working as a maid bad? After all, this very job got us where we are today. And even if I want to, I cannot stop working.

This is what made me what I’m today. I earn my own money, don’t ask anyone for anything. I have also saved some amount for my old age and bad times. I know my son is there for me. But I, too, want to be there for myself.”

[ALSO READ: This Women-Led Organisation Has Trained Self-defence To More Than 150,000 Women!]

Prerna Shah

“I come from a typical Gujarati family. My parents never stopped me from pursuing anything. However, it was my idea to get married and live as a homemaker. Mine was a love marriage! Now, intercaste marriage was something I had to fight for, but I thought it was worth it ― until we got separated.

It was his extramarital affair that made us apart. While I decided to move out with my 8YO girl, managing her, her school fees, and other necessities was not an easy task. I took up a job at a BPO, but my salary was barely enough to make ends meet.

It was not my qualifications that hindered my career; it was my lack of experience in the outer world. It was my first job, and the growth rate was lower than the acknowledgement I used to get at my in-laws for working throughout the day!

Eventually, I moved to my mother’s place to save some money. She also helped me in managing my daughter’s studies. And it was just another day when I heard her talking to our unmarried neighbour, ‘jab tak financially secure naa ban jao, shaadi mat karna!’

I know how worried she was for me and how much it hurt her to see me slogging off day and night. It was a bad phase; we got over it ― took some time, but I have grown into an independent, fierce woman now. Oh, by the way, I recently booked a flat in South Kolkata!”

[ALSO READ: This Fiery Ahmedabad Auto Driver Defied Disability To Support Her Dreams And Family!]

Namrata Singh

“I come from a very small village in Bihar. My mother had to ‘sort of’ fight for my higher education as most of the girls in our community are married off by the age of 22-23. But she fought hard for me.

While I was doing my graduation from DU, she used to send me very limited money and always used to say ‘beta, bhatak mat jaana!’ Can’t blame her!! I come from a lower-middle-class family and from a small village ― the last thing she needed in her life was to hear from someone saying ki aapki ladki toh bigad rahi hai!

So what did I do? I barely talked with boys outside the college, always kept my circle limited and partying? naah, I anyways didn’t have extra money for that!

But my life truly changed after I joined Deloitte. I was ‘probably’ the first individual (yes, not even any boy had done this) to get a job in such a big MNC from my village. I remember how hard my father tried to stop his tears when I handed him my first salary.

Forget my family, not my relatives ever asked about my marriage since that day. And no, not because I am young anymore, but because they couldn’t find a suitable match for me (yet)! Guess what? My parents have asked me to find myself a groom.

I wonder sometimes, when did they become so open-minded? And then I feel it’s not their mind that was closed; it was their hearts and thoughts. Now that they see me earning a seven-figure salary, managing my own expenses, managing half of my home’s expenditure and investing in so many SIPs and MFs, I think they know that I’m not some frog belonging to the well anymore. I’ve seen the sky now, and I won’t limit myself anymore!”

Is your story similar to any of these amazing women? What does #FinancialFreedom mean to you? Tell us your story, and we would love to tell it to the world!