British era policing over, data is new science, says Amit Shah

Union home minister Amit Shah said the days of British era policing are over, as he stressed on the importance of using big data in policing.

"Data is the new science and big data is the solution to all problems - this should become the thumb rule for all police forces," Shah said on Friday, addressing the gathering at the inauguration of the 48th All India Police Science Congress in Bhopal. "The time of British era danda (baton)-based policing is over. Now, it's imperative that policing is done on the basis of knowledge, evidence and logic. We have to change the science of policing."

The minister said, "Police need to be tech-savvy to remain two steps ahead of criminals. We need to discuss both aspects of police science, which comprises science for police and science of police."


Shah highlighted the ways in which scientific processes have been helping in maintaining law and order in the country. He said there were lingering problems such as the Kashmir issue, left-wing extremism, narcotics and armed groups in the Northeast that continued to be a threat to internal security. "Modi government addressed all these issues scientifically and took measures diligently," he said.

The minister also said that since the abrogation of Article 370, in August 2019, large-scale development is happening in Jammu and Kashmir.

Talking about left-wing extremism, Shah said, "In a state like Madhya Pradesh, left-wing extremism is almost over." Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh said, "MP Police has taken action against different types of mafia and managed to free land worth about Rs 12,000 crore in the past two years. We have decided to use this land for the poor and for various other purposes."The two-day event is being held at the Central Academy of Police Training in Bhopal where papers will be presented on various themes, including policing during the pandemic, skills of investigators and aid of technology, law and order processes, human resource management and wellness, leadership mentoring and mental health stress management, and prison processes and good practices.