At the Mumbai Police Gymkhana, where a briefing was organised to announce the new vehicular additions to the police force, DCP (HQ) Vijaysingh Jadhav said, “The Mumbai Police have always been compared time and again with the Scotland Yard of the United Kingdom. Under the police modernisation scheme, from 2000 to 2009, the department had acquired a total of 2920 vehicles and after the 26/11 terror attacks, the government has sanctioned an amount of Rs. 21 crore for buying vehicles and Rs. 8 crore for buying boats to strengthen coastal policing. We have acquired three bullet-proof Mahindra Rakshak jeeps, 30 Boleros, 9 Scorpios, four troop carrier buses, 21 towing crane trucks and 160 new motorcycles for beat constables. Apart from these three armoured Rakshaks, two more would soon be inducted so that all the five regional control rooms in the city will have an armoured vehicle.” Stressing the need for bullet-proof vehicles, Jadhav said that such vehicles would have helped the police face the threat of heavily armed terrorists during the 26/11 attacks.

Commissioner of Police D Sivanandan also spoke about how the induction of new vehicles is a major step towards making the police department a force fully prepared to tackle any kind of hostile situation. “This day is a golden day for the Mumbai Police as we are taking a significant step towards gaining total preparedness. We ensure that something like 26/11 will not happen again. We are also training 100 police personnel, in collaboration with other security forces in each regional zone of the city. We also equip them with latest weaponry so that such attacks can be tackled effectively and the terrorists would be sent home in body bags,” he said.

Talking about the beat constables, who have been equipped with bikes, Sivanandan said, “These policemen have to patrol their beats and use their mobility to cultivate sources and collect intelligence about the happenings in their jurisdiction.”

Home Minister Dr Jayant Patil, who was accompanied by Minister of State for Home Naseem Khan, said, “The government and the public are fully aware that mobility is the need of the day for the police department. I regularly discuss ideas with Sivanandan on how to improve mobility of the police. I have also discussed the possibility of having helicopters to improve response time of the police in deserving situations when the vehicular traffic does not allow quick transportation.” Besides providing facilities like more houses for policemen and gym facilities for every police housing colony, Patil also promised to increase the FSI from 2.5 to 4 for police housing. “I also request the media to provide the public with my email address-hmjayantpatil@gmail.com-so that members of the public aggrieved with the way the government machinery works, can get in touch with me,” he said.