Annual DGP conference to be held in Delhi from January 20-22

After travelling in seven cities, the annual DGP conference—the biggest security conference where top police officials get a chance to brief Prime Minister Narendra Modi on key policing and internal security issues—has come back to Delhi. The top police brass will meet in Delhi on January 20-22 to discuss key threats and challenges; on top of the list are using technology for effective policing, maritime security, cyber security, war against drugs and improved border management. 

What would also figure on top of the agenda are tackling threat by Khalistani extremists, China’s growing belligerence on the line of actual control, economic threats, cyber crimes and cryptocurrencies and bringing an end to northeast insurgency with effective handling by security forces as well as long term solutions like aiding development works. 

Since 2014, Modi has been taking a keen interest in the DGP conference organised by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Intelligence Bureau, attending all sessions and encouraging free and informal discussions. During the UPA tenure, the conference used to be customarily organised in Delhi where the prime minister had a symbolic presence and would leave the venue after his address throwing the floor open to the central and state agencies to discuss various issues and prepare the roadmap for the MHA to deliberate upon, by documenting the internal security threats in various theatres for smoother coordination. 

However, after the BJP came to power, the top police brass has met outside Delhi. The meeting was organised first at Guwahati in 2014 and later at Rann of Kutch in 2015, National Police Academy in Hyderabad in 2016, BSF academy at Tekanpur in 2017, Pune in 2019 and virtually during Covid pandemic only to meet again in Lucknow in a hybrid mode. 

The police brass meet comes back to Delhi after a full cycle, one year ahead of the completion of the second term of the Modi government in 2024. At the last conference, inaugurated by Home Minister Amit Shah, rising cyber crimes, narcotics trafficking, adoption of future technologies for grassroot policing, counter terrorism challenges were on top of the agenda of the DGPs and Inspector Generals of states.

This time, the focus is also on complete annihilation of naxal violence and Maoist terror by 2024 as the home minister has proclaimed on public platforms, countering radicalisation by terror groups and security challenges in the state of Jammu and Kashmir especially since the MHA is controlling the administrative apparatus post merger of J&K cadre into AGMUT cadre. The elections in J&K are due this year and the eyes of the security apparatus is on the smooth conduct of the first polls post abrogation of article 370.