This is a presentation on community policing in Kerala and its lessons for similar programmes for public-civil society partnership in other areas for community development, made at the Capacity Building workshop for NGOs, Jaipur, Rajasthan in March 2016

1. “Statewide ROAD SAFETY NGOs Project”
Government of Rajasthan
Learnings & Recommendations from
Community Policing
in Kerala
Vinay Varma Raja, MS (USA)
Community Policing Consultant
Kerala
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ABOUT MYSELF

3. PROFESSIONAL PROFILE
• 15 years of experience in development and
implementation of community development
programmes, in collaboration with Ministers and senior
officials of Government of Kerala, elected representatives
of local self-Government bodies, and District heads of
Government Departments.
• Focus Areas: Road Safety, Substance Abuse, Community
& Citizen Safety, Awareness Media, Citizenship
Education, and Governance Improvement.
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4. EDUCATION
• University of Delaware, USA
M.S., Agribusiness & Operations Research, 1988 – 92
• University of Mumbai, India
M.Sc, Mathematics, 1986 - 88
• Ramnarain Ruia College, Mumbai
B Sc, Mathematics, 1982 - 85
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5. DESIGNATIONS, ASSIGNMENTS & PROJECTS
(last 5 years)
• Content Coordinator – Police Training, World Justice
Challenge Project, Indo-Nepal Police
• Programme Advisor & Research Consultant, Student Police
Cadet Project, Government of Kerala
• Member, Core Support Team, Janamaithri Suraksha Project,
Government of Kerala
• Director, Pappu Zebra Road Sense National Campaign
• Advisor, People’s Trust, Jaipur (& Director, Kerala branch)
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6. HONORS AND AWARDS
• Best in State Award – Department of Excise, Kerala, June 2015
For “We want Drug-free Schools” School-level Drug Abuse Awareness
Programme, Kerala
• Chief Minister’s Governance Award, October 2014
For key role as member of core development team of Student Police Cadet
project, nationally acclaimed youth development programme of Government
of Kerala
• Home Minister’s Award of Appreciation, October 2010
For contribution to success of Janamaithri Suraksha Project, the flagship
community policing project of Kerala Police
• Significant Contribution to Community Policing, May 2008
Acknowledgement of contribution to community projects of Kerala Police
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7. Best Project in State Award for school-level anti-drug
abuse programme, Government of Kerala 2015
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“Learnings & Recommendations from
Community Policing in Kerala”

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ABOUT COMMUNITY POLICING

10. Community Policing
• Community Policing facilitates responsible participation
by citizens in community-level crime prevention activities
• Community Policing ensures and strengthens public
security by securing willing co-operation of people who
are simultaneously the beneficiaries of such
enforcement.
• Community Policing is often referred to as “Democracy in
Action”
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11. Community Policing in Kerala
• Initiated in a small way with official blessings in 2001/2
• Pilot phase 2003-2007 – several localised programmes
• Formally launched in 2007 through issue of Government
guidelines for Janamaithri Suraksha Project (Similar to the one
on road safety issued last year by Transport Dept in Rajasthan)
• Strengthened through rollout of Student Police Cadet Project
in 2010
• Subsequent programmes for Protection of Senior Citizens,
Vulnerable & Delinquent Children, etc.
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12. Janamaithri Suraksha Project
Government of Kerala
I was key member of the ideating team for developing the
internationally-awarded Janamaithri Suraksha project, now
recognized as a model for community policing by
Governments across India.
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13. • Flagship community policing project of Kerala Police
launched statewide in late- 2007
• Community outreach programme to empower citizens
across Kerala.
• Specially trained police officers attached to selected
police stations make periodic visits to households for
interactions with local residents.
• Insight: Wide range of problems were resolved due to
the assistance of police personnel
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14. Student Police Cadet Project
Government of Kerala
• I was a member of the core group to develop and grow
the Student Police Cadet Project, much-acclaimed youth
development programme of Government of Kerala.
• This in-school student training programme – now present
in hundreds of schools across Kerala - is expanding
throughout the country with support of the respective
state Governments, such as Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana
and Karnataka.
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16. • Launched in August 2010, the SPC Project is an educationally-
focused community development project that seeks to train
high school students as responsible and committed citizens of
the country.
• Students are provided uniforms, undergo various training
programmes, and given exposure to different governance
agencies such as police, road safety authorities, fire and
safety, disaster management, forest and environment, and so
on.
• Insight: Students are highly motivated for self-development
as well as to grow as responsible citizens
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18. • I was Leader and Mentor of team that developed the
Pappu Zebra Road-sense project for Kerala Police, a
nationally acclaimed community-level road safety
sensitization programme coinciding with the United
Nations’ Decade of Action for Road Safety.
• Played a leading role in expansion of the Pappu Zebra
Campaign to other states in India, including Rajasthan,
Odisha, Karnataka and Mumbai
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PAPPU ZEBRA NATIONAL ROAD SENSE
CAMPAIGN

19. Pappu Zebra Road-sense Campaign
The Pappu Zebra Road-
sense Programme features
Pappu the Road-sense
Zebra as the central
character in an
educational outreach
programme to sensitise
community members on
road safety, especially
effective for school
students.
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20. Pappu Zebra launch in Kerala (2009)
Unveiled in June 2009 and
officially adopted by the Kerala
Police Department as brand
ambassador for road safety
Pappu the Road-sense Zebra
travelled across the state,
visiting hundreds of schools,
participating in public events
and interacting with students
and community members.
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21. Activities & Materials
• Since launch, Pappu Zebra visited schools, appeared on road-
side hoardings, bumper stickers, sign boards, and school
accessories such as notebooks, name slips, timetable cards,
etc.
• To promote road safety among school students, educationally
effective illustrated storybooks, featuring Pappu Zebra and his
friends in a number of traffic situations, were developed.
• Pappu Zebra Road-sense Audio CDs and Animation films (in
Malayalam) were developed, and released for public
dissemination during National Road Safety Week in January
2012.
• More Pappu Zebra Books, Animation Films, Interactive CDs,
Games etc., are being developed to deepen the impact of the
Pappu Zebra Road-sense project.
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22. Pappu Zebra Road-sense National Campaign
(Rajasthan)
The Pappu Zebra
project was initiated in
Rajasthan, in January
2011, by the road
safety authorities
under the initiative of
People’s Trust, Jaipur.
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23. Pappu Zebra Road-sense National Campaign
(Odisha)
The Pappu Zebra Road-
sense Project was
initiated in Odisha, at
Bhubaneswar – Cuttack,
during the Road Safety
Week 2011, with the
Forum for Prevention of
Road Accidents (FPRA) as
regional partner,
supported by the local
authorities.
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24. Pappu Zebra Road-sense National Campaign
(Mumbai)
In May 2013, Pappu
Zebra appeared on the
streets of Mumbai, with
support from WIAA
(Western India
Automobile Association).
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25. Pappu with students – Kerala & Rajasthan
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26. ASSOCIATIONS & ENDORSEMENTS
The Pappu Zebra Road-sense Project has been supported
and endorsed by officials of :
Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM),
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII),
Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI),
TATA Council for Community Initiatives (TCCI),
International Association for Human Values (IAHV), and
Infosys Foundation.
The Pappu Zebra Road-sense Programme received an
Honourable Mention at the International Safety Media
Awards event held in London, September 2010
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ASSESSMENT & DISCUSSION

28. Benefits of Community Policing for Kerala
• Higher self-esteem for police at station level,
thereby improving efficiency of police services
• Better image of authorities in communities,
enhancing cooperation levels
• Students learn the value of discipline and training
• Communities more empowered to tackle local
issues
• Women, students, elderly citizens feel more
secure
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29. Learnings from success of Community Policing
• Importance of public participation in success of such
programmes
• Community representatives must be from a wide range
of backgrounds and experiences
• Inputs from community lead to better rules by
authorities as well as public willingness to follow them
• Good relations between community and authorities
boosts confidence of officials as well as community
members, strengthening entire governance system
• Safety and security of community is enhanced through
genuine partnerships
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30. RECOMMENDATIONS & SUGGESTIONS - I
• Regular Training for all stakeholders is important – esp
for community members to develop skills and keep
updated on developments in field
• During training sessions, there must be opportunity for
participants to share experiences and interact with
officials from stakeholder departments
• Also, even on field, regular interaction between officials
(at all levels) and community participants must be
facilitated and encouraged
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31. RECOMMENDATIONS & SUGGESTIONS - II
• Residential and non-residential meetings are necessary
to ensure uniformity of programme rollout, sharing of
experiences and to assess progress at specific intervals
• Bulletins and periodical reports on activities at each
community must be developed ad disseminated
• Statewide network (& list) of resource persons can be
developed
• Local NGOs can recommend youth from their locality for
career-based training in community development
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32. CAUTIONARY THOUGHTS
• NGO members will be viewed as role models for their
immediate community. Hence they must not only practice the
rules of the road, but also disseminate them to their family
members, neighbourhoods and communities
• As persons associated with authority, members will come into
contact with officials. Such interactions are to be conducted,
as far as possible, at a professional level, with no scope for
personal advantage or unethical behaviour.
• A code of ethics and rules of proper conduct must be
developed By and For all NGO members, to be strictly
adhered to in their work with the community and
government officials
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33. Conclusion
• The success of programmes that effectively integrate
community needs with governance processes requires
dedication and commitment from all stakeholders.
• It must be kept in mind – by all participants - that skills
and capacity development is an ongoing process that
may take several years to achieve true effectiveness.
• However, since road safety is a matter that affects each
one of us, as well as future generations, all efforts to this
end, is a worthwhile contribution to the cause.
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Thank You
&
All the Best!
Vinay Varma Raja
Ph: 09446375338
E-mail: varmapkrv@gmail.com