Bangalore, Nov 8 (IANS)

 Policing in cities has become challenging due to mismatch between growing urban population and shortage of police personnel, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said Thursday.

"Policing has become a casualty due to massive urbanisation, as the number of police personnel had not increased in proportion to the explosive population growth in cities across the country," Siddaramaiah said at a conference of top police officials here.

Admitting that the burden of maintaining law and order, guarding vital installations, checking crime rate and providing security to VIPs had increased manifold over the years, the chief minister advocated urban policing as prevalent in developed countries, which had seen urbanisation over the decades.

"Though urban policing is not new as a term, it is the need of the hour to cope with increasing work pressure and resource constraints in cities," Siddaramaiah said at the second All-India Conference of Commissioners of Police from states across the country.

Noting that pace of urbanisation was accelerating in the country like never before, the chief minister advised the police commissioners to make optimal use of social networks and effective communication to step up urban policing.

On the people's perception that police serve interests of an elite minority at the cost of public good, he said effective policing would instill a sense of security and infuse a feeling of justice being delivered.

He said police being the most visible arm of the state administration, law enforcement and policing were signs of good governance.

"There is a compelling need to project police as an instrument that fosters, complements democracy and augments the welfare of masses," Siddaramaiah told police officers. 

Referring to public anger over the way police handle certain situations and guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court, the chief minister called for transparency, probity and acquisition of newer skill-sets for efficient functioning of the police force.

The conference was held to mark the golden jubilee year of the Bangalore police commissionarate, which serves a million people in the city.