Jabalpur, though one of the largest cities of Madhya Pradesh, had been in the news for wrong reasons till recently. Even the natural surroundings of Jabalpur, what with Narmada river flowing nearby could not hide the fact of it being labelled a place where large number of people would commit suicide. It was in these difficult times that IPS officer Mr Hari Narayan Chari Mishra came out with a plan and successfully addressed the situation.
Not only this, Mr Mishra, a 2003 batch officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, also took exemplary steps to contain naxalism in the state. He is also credited with bringing back lots of youth from the lure or naxal idology and into the mainstream.
In an interview with Indian Masterminds, Mr. Mishra shared his experiences and achievements in the policing.
Mission `Sanjivini’
Mr. Mishra, who hails from Siwan in Bihar, is considered amongst the most successful officers in the country. Having graduated from prestigious Banaras Hindu University, Mr. Mishra joined the police forces with lots of zeal. During the year 2014-15, he was posted in Jabalpur as the head of police department. The district was struggling with disturbing rates of suicides. It was needed to be addressed on a priority basis. Mr. Mishra recalls, “In such cases, taking actions under the law was not going to give any long-term result. We wanted to address it from the roots. In our primary research the reason behind the suicides was becoming clear. Most of the students were committing suicides after suffering from depression due to failures in study or jobs. We wanted to help them, and the only way was to make them talk. This way we came up with the `Sanjivini’ initiative.”
Under this scheme, a helpline was created. Many doctors and counsellors were also taken on board. If any individual was found struggling with mental health, he could reach on the helpline number. Then the team of operators would connect them with doctors or counsellors according to the situation. Mr. Mishra said, “We ensured that no one’s identity came out in the public, so they could speak their heart out. If any person wanted help for their loved ones they could also reach on the helpline and get the best advice. This initiative was so successful that Jabalpur came down on number five in the suicide rates.’’
Subsequently, as a DIG, Mr. Mishra has also launched this initiative in Indore and this too became quite successful.
Fighting Naxalism
While posted in Balaghat in MP, Mr. Mishra made an action plan to fight the naxals and also provide them an opportunity to lead an honest life. “I feel the main reason behind the increase of naxalism is the communication gap. If the police or the administration will engage them in heathy dialogue, then this problem can be solved once and for all. We did the same in Balaghat. Many workshops and events were organized for the youths who might have lost their track. They were given skill development training so that they could be employed and live with pride. We also engaged them in several sports activity, with wonderful results.”
Mr. Mishra also took strict action against the organized crime network in Gwalior. This is the reason why he has now been addressed as the ‘ Real Singham’ !
