LUCKNOW: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on October 1 released ‘Sangharsh’ (Struggle), the autobiography of former Director General of Police and Padma Shri awardee Prakash Singh, a retired IPS officer of 1959 batch from the UP cadre, at the Lok Bhawan auditorium in Lucknow.
Published by Prabhat Prakashan, the book brings together Singh’s experiences from a long police career that took him through some of India’s most sensitive security and law-and-order environments, including Nagaland, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir.
The book launch was part of a larger police-focused programme at Lok Bhawan that also saw the flag-off of 87 technologically equipped interceptor vehicles and the felicitation of police personnel for gallantry and distinguished service.
Prabhat Prakashan CEO Pawan Agrawal, Uttar Pradesh DGP Rajeev Krishna, Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Sanjay Prasad, Social Welfare Minister Asim Arun, senior police officers and other dignitaries were present at the event.
A Career Shaped by Conflict and Internal Security
At the heart of ‘Sangharsh’ is 90 years old Ex-IPS Singh’s account of policing in regions that have witnessed insurgency, militancy, communal tensions and other complex internal-security challenges.
The narrative draws on his experiences across several states and regions, including Nagaland, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir, where he served in uniform.
Singh has described the central idea of the book through the continuing nature of the struggle involved in maintaining internal security. While the form and nature of conflict may change across generations, the responsibility of protecting the country’s unity, integrity and internal security remains a continuing challenge.
The book therefore goes beyond a conventional account of a police officer’s career. It also examines the institutional and administrative realities that shaped policing during different phases of his service.
Read also: Ex-UP DGP Prakash Singh Says Police Service Offers Opportunity to Serve Society
Police Reform as a Major Theme
Prakash Singh is widely associated with the campaign for structural police reforms in India. His advocacy eventually became part of a landmark Supreme Court intervention on police reforms in 2006, which laid down directions concerning areas including police establishment boards, fixed tenures for key police officers and mechanisms intended to reduce undue political interference.
‘Sangharsh’ revisits the challenges surrounding this reform journey, including institutional resistance, bureaucratic hurdles and the difficulties of translating structural recommendations into actual changes in police administration.
The book also reflects on the gap that can emerge between reform proposals and their implementation, an issue that has remained central to discussions on police accountability, autonomy and professional functioning.
Yogi Adityanath on Police Reforms
Speaking at the launch, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath referred to Prakash Singh’s long campaign for police reforms and said that Uttar Pradesh had implemented the reforms advocated by him.
The Chief Minister said the state had moved towards strengthening its police infrastructure and modernising policing through technology. He also referred to the functioning of seven police commissionerates in Uttar Pradesh.
Adityanath also contrasted the law-and-order situation before 2017 with developments under his government. He alleged that mafia elements had exercised significant influence in the state before 2017 and that parallel systems of power had operated in several areas. These remarks were part of his broader account of the state government’s approach to policing and law and order.
He emphasised that police reforms require political and administrative commitment as well as implementation on the ground.
The Chief Minister also cautioned officials against relying on shortcuts and superficial formalities, stressing the importance of sustained institutional work.
Prakash Singh Praises Police Autonomy in UP
Speaking on the occasion, Prakash Singh praised the present Uttar Pradesh administration’s approach towards the police.
Singh said the tenure of Yogi Adityanath would be remembered as a “golden era” for the police force and credited the Chief Minister with providing the state police the operational freedom and administrative backing he considered necessary for effective policing.
His remarks represented his assessment of the functioning of the police administration in the state.
Singh also reflected on his own career while discussing ‘Sangharsh’. He said the book draws from experiences gathered across eight states, including five where he served in uniform — Nagaland, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir.
According to Singh, although the face and nature of conflict can change from one generation to another, the fundamental struggle involved in protecting internal security remains.
From Police Service to a National Reform Campaign
Prakash Singh’s career has extended beyond conventional policing responsibilities. His service in some of India’s most challenging regions exposed him to the operational realities of counter-insurgency, law and order and internal security.
His subsequent campaign for police reforms brought institutional questions surrounding policing into the national public discourse.
The release of ‘Sangharsh’ brings these two strands together — the experiences of policing in difficult environments and the long institutional battle for reform.
For readers, the autobiography offers an account of policing not only through the incidents encountered by a senior police officer, but also through the administrative, structural and institutional challenges that accompany the functioning of a modern police force.
A Book Launch Alongside Police Modernisation
The release of ‘Sangharsh’ was held alongside a series of measures concerning the Uttar Pradesh Police.
The Chief Minister flagged off 87 interceptor vehicles, comprising four-wheelers and two-wheelers equipped with modern technology, intended to strengthen enforcement, patrolling and road-safety efforts across the state.
The programme also included the felicitation of 26 police personnel. Sixteen received the President’s Police Medal for Gallantry and 10 were awarded the Chief Minister’s Gallantry Medal, according to reports from the event.
The ceremony thus brought together three aspects of contemporary policing — recognition of personnel for courage and service, technological modernisation of policing infrastructure, and reflection on the institutional reforms that have shaped debates around the police force.
About Prakash Singh
Prakash Singh is a distinguished retired Indian Police Service (IPS) officer from the 1959 batch of the Uttar Pradesh cadre. He achieved All India Rank 1 in his UPSC examination and rose to serve as the Director General of Police (DGP) for both Uttar Pradesh and Assam, as well as the Director General of the Border Security Force (BSF). Widely celebrated as the chief architect of police reforms in India, he championed a historic 1996 Supreme Court petition that culminated in a landmark 2006 judgment structuralizing police accountability. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1991.
