May 12: Every month, for 23 years now, its objective has been to "develop a rapport between the police and the people." Now Dakshata, the Maharashtra police magazine, is finally getting down to it.

Realising that in this Era of Image, it won't do to churn out a drab, lifeless journal, the police department has ordered a thorough editorial and design overhaul of the Marathi publication, the result of which will appear before the public from next month.

As a first, says deputy commissioner of police and editorial head Chandrashekhar Rokade, "The edits will be shorter, more crisp, and more in tune with important changes in the world."

Next, Dakshata's cover page which used to be occupied by advertisements will now carry pictures from incidents of crime, current affairs and various police functions from across the state. The back page will have photographs related to inside stories and columns.

Further, Dakshata will have, for the first time, eight colour pages at regular intervals in its 70-odd pages. The current typeface, which is rather large by conventional standards, has been reduced to match those of other Marathi magazines.

Other improvements include a column for readers' feedback, a zodiac, a crossword, at least three poems in an issue, news from the police department and a special column informing the police of their rights and duties.

To make it even more easy and relaxed for readers, each number will contain at least 20 cartoons, specially commissioned as well as selected with approval from various newspapers. Rokade continues, "To improve quality, we will also be inviting renowned writers and columnists to write for us. I'm sure it will make the magazine interesting reading."

And it won't limit itself to writing from the state police. Other security agencies such as the Intelligence Bureau, the Central Bureau of Intelligence, the State Reserve Police Force, the Home Guard, the Civil Defence, the National Cadet Corps and the Railway Police will also be asked to contribute to Dakshata.

The department will send out copies of the magazine to police departments of other states and subscribe to their's to measure and improve its quality in comparison.

With such radical changes in Dakshata, Rokade has naturally started thinking in terms of circulation and advertisement revenue. He is keen to see it grow from the present 20,000 and intends to urge vendors and agents to push the magazine among their customers.

Subscription forms will be inserted in every issue and rates will be revised. And, the DCP says, "We will also be applying to the Audit Bureau of Circulation for certification of figures, based on which we hope to get more and better advertisements."

Well, then, now that's talking business, the language of the people. The power of the media may just be what the police need to project a more caring, less intimidating image to the man on the street.

And through a better, brighter Dakshata, they may have quite sensibly taken the first step towards establishing what Rokade hopes will become "a police-public bridge."

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.