New Delhi. 02 October 2019.
Home Minister of India Amit Shah presided over as Chief Guest at the 27th Anniversary celebrations of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) of the Central Reserved Police Force (CRPF), in Ahmedabad recently.
The Minster also presented gallantry medals to the family members of the jawans who have laid their lives in the line of duty. Shah said that the credit of boosting growth and development in the country by maintaining peace goes to the jawans who have made the supreme sacrifice towards this cause.
To honour these sacrifices Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has dedicated a National Police Memorial in New Delhi, to the Nation. The PM would release the logo of the memorial on this October 31 (Sardar Patel anniversary), the Home Minister added.
Shah appealed to the people of India to not forget the supreme sacrifice the jawans make so that each Indian can live peacefully. He said that every Indian must atleast once visit the National Police Memorial to pay tribute to the jawans who have sacrificed their lives in the service of the Nation. The Home Minister talked about instances from Kashmir, Ladakh, Bhuj and other places across India, where CRPF jawans led from the front and displayed indomitable courage in defending the Nation.
The Home Minister specifically mentioned about the terrorist attack on Parliament, where the CRPF jawans prevented them to enter the Parliament and failed the attack. He also remembered the historic ‘Hot Springs Conflict’ in Ladakh sector, where the CRPF jawans valiantly defended the Nation from the fierce Chinese attack. “Every Indian must know that had it not been for these brave soldiers, our beloved Ladakh would not have been with us today. To remember their sacrifices, we celebrate 21st October as ‘Police Smriti Diwas’ each year”, the Home Minister said.
Shah remembered the supreme sacrifice of 2184 CRPF jawans and assured all police and paramilitary force personnel that, “we would move ahead with determination to transform the country into a ‘New India’, under the leadership of PM, Narendra Modi”.
Talking about the RAF, Shah said that the force has created a huge credibility among the people of India by setting an example through its discipline and courage. He informed that five additional battalions have been added to the existing ten in January 2018. With the initiative taken by Narendra Modi, a training academy has been established in Meerut, which would train police and paramilitary force personnel in anti-riot and crowd-control duties. Many foreign police and armed forces have also trained their officers in this training academy, which is a matter of pride for India, Shah added.
The Home Minister noted that whether it is UN missions or rescue operations during natural calamities or awareness campaigns for sanitation, conservation of environment and water or setting up medical camps, RAF has performed brilliantly by establishing a connect with the people at the ground.
Shah specifically recognised the contributions of the lady officers of the force and congratulated the 125 lady cadets who took part in the UN peace keeping mission in Liberia. The Home Minister expressed pride that this was the first Indian woman contingent to take part in a UN peace keeping mission.
