An Officer And IT

RC Kohli, Senior Additional
Commissioner of Delhi Police, joined the Indian Police Services in 1966. Known for
managing law and order efficiently, this man handled the situation in Mizoram during the
peak of insurgency. It is interesting to note that, prior to joining the Police, Kohli
taught English in the University of Delhi, from 1964 to 1966. He believes that one's life
should be identified by his work. But what is the officer doing with IT? Same as Siemens
Information Systems Ltd (SISL) is doing with police. Recently SISL developed Computer
Telephony Integration (CTI) products to help Delhi Police in tracking hoax callers. During
the official launch of Siemens CTI products, Kohli discussed with Sharmila Chand how IT is
being utilized by the Police. Excerpts:

How do CTI products help the Police
in identifying the hoax caller?

The Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) system installed in the Police Control Room, at
Police Headquarters, has a provision through which the number of the calling line is
displayed on the monitor if the call is made from an electronic exchange. Since the MTNL
directory is already available in the computer, address of the premises from which the
call is made can be ascertained without any loss of time.

Has it been successful so far? color="#000000" size="2" face="Arial">

Yes, the provision of CTI products in the ACD System has been a tremendous success as it
has helped in identifying many hoax callers.

Has any other company, besides
Siemens, come up with such products? face="Arial">

I don't think so because the Delhi Police got this system especially developed. The
contract for the installation of the ACD system was awarded to Telecommunication
Consultants India Ltd (TCIL). TCIL gave sub-contracts to Siemens for the development of
software and to ECIL for the supply of hardware. The system integration was done by TCIL.
The miniature form of ACD system is available with the electronic exchanges being
manufactured by Alcatel, AT&T etc. However, Delhi Police got it developed specifically
since the requirement was of a larger system.

Do you realize the need of such
products?

Definitely we realize the need of such products as automation of the Control Room has made
our operations easier, a lot simpler, and more effective, as earlier everything was done
manually.

How much has the Police spent on
installing and commissioning the CTI products? size="2" face="Arial">

The automation project involves a number of complex projects processed together, so it may
not be possible to work out the exact amount spent on the installation of CTI products.

What are the other IT initiatives
taken by the Police in the past? face="Arial">

The project has been taken up in phases. In the first phase, we installed an ACD system
with a LAN. Currently we are in the second phase and are planning to purchase and install
a Digital Trunked Radio System, which is in the final stage. In the third phase, we intend
to install a Command, Control, and Vehicle Tracking System for effective patrol van
management.

Are you getting your staff trained
in IT?

Yes, our staff got trained from ECIL after the installation of the ACD system.

How much IT does the Police use? color="#000000" size="2" face="Arial">

As in any other department, computers have a wide range of use in the Police. By
computerizing certain areas, which are important from law and order point of view, we have
achieved higher efficiency level with less effort.

Do you think further advancement is
called for?

With the rapid advancement of technology, there is always a scope for further improvement.
For instance, the present ACD system cannot identify the calls made by cellular phones.
So, we have asked TCIL and Siemens to make necessary upgradation measures to make the
system more reliable.