Beyond the Backlash

The protestations made by young female recruits at the Gorakhpur PAC Training Centre have exposed the cracks in India's police training model which urgently requires gender sensitisation

- OP SINGH

It began as a murmur but erupted into headlines—a group of women recruits at the Gorakhpur PAC Training Centre, exhausted and frustrated, publicly protested against what they described as shabby treatment during their basic induction training. Videos of the young women, many barely out of college, speaking up against their living conditions and alleged insensitivity of the training staff, quickly went viral. For a state force like Uttar Pradesh Police—often praised in recent years for professionalising recruitment and enhancing law enforcement capabilities—this was not just a setback. It was a reality check.

The government's response was swift. Denials from local authorities were accompanied by the suspension of a senior IPS officer heading the training programme. But the deeper questions that the incident throws up cannot be papered over. How prepared are our institutions to handle large-scale intakes into the police? Can decades-old training infrastructure and mindsets be stretched to accommodate the modern needs of a diverse and increasingly gender-inclusive force? And above all, can we afford to lose the morale and trust of our newest recruits, even before they wear the uniform with pride?

There is no denying that the recent recruitment drive in Uttar Pradesh was conducted with professionalism and transparency. Over 60,000 recruits were selected purely on merit, many from rural, disadvantaged backgrounds. For these young men and women, selection into the police force was not just a job—it was a transformative milestone.

Yet, the system faltered at the very next step: basic amenities during training.