For many of us, doing one job with 100 % effort becomes a great achievement. Then there are those who excel in playing many roles in while doing one job and with utmost efficiency. IPS officer of 2016 batch Ms. Pritpal Kaur Patra is one such person. The gold medalist in BDS from SRDC college, Faridabad, she is just not a dentist turned police but she also plays roles of counsellor & educator in her postings.
Currently, she is posted as the SP of Noklak district of Nagaland. The district which shares borders with Myanmar is the youngest district in the state and Ms. Kaur is the first SP to serve here.
During a conversation with Indian Masterminds Ms. Kaur shares her experiences of working in a state whose culture was completely alien to her. However, she not only did she master their native language but also made the local people her extended family.
WORKING AS AN EDUCATOR
Although Ms. Kaur got a degree of BDS and was one of the best students in the batch, she was not satisfied. She always had a feeling that her place was somewhere else. So she started preparation for UPSC and got 225th rank in the 2016 exam and was allotted IPS.
During the cadre allotment process this girl from Haryana was given Nagaland. The place and culture were very unfamiliar to her, but she lookedviewed it as an empty canvas on which she could paint anything.
Before being posted as the SP, Noklal she served as the SDPO, in Tuensang. Upon reaching Nagaland she realized that many things could be done here. “Compared to various other states, this place is remote and even lacks basic infrastructure. But they are way ahead in culture & heritage. There is a lot of possibility for sports & education”, said Ms. Kaur.
With the permission from her senior, Ms. Kaur started UPSC coaching for students here. For this, the conference room of SP office in Tuensang was converted into coaching. She started with 9 students and their strength soon went upto 39. Subsequently, two officers form NCS EAC also joined her as educator and helped in preparation for state services.
Now, as SP Noklak she has taken this initiative here also. The best part about the officer is that she spends her own salary to buy the books for all the aspirants.
COUNSELLING THE DRUG ADDICTS
Since Noklak shares the border with Myanmar, the problem of drug-trafficking & drug-abuse among the youth is quite rampant here. So Ms Kaur officer has taken up the role of a counselor as well. Along with the youth engaged in drug addiction, the officer also provides counselling to their parents. “We have an anti-drug squad which works day & night for seizing the drugs and controlling the trafficking. However, the most important thing is to prevent the youths from becoming drug-addicts and wasting their lives. Nothing works better than communication in this regard”, said the officer.
Ms Kaur believes that she is most lucky to be able to serve in such far-flung areas. Because it’s here that she finds endless opportunities to serve the people.
