Sushilkumar Shinde to inaugurate 1st police riot control academy in Meerut

NEW DELHI: The country's first police academy for riot control and public order management will be inaugurated by Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde in Meerut this weekend.

The academy, called RAF academy of Public Order (RAPO), will be run by paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in its 108th battalion campus of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) in the Uttar Pradesh town.

The RAF is the specialised riot control unit of the CRPF with the trademark blue dungaree uniform.

Shinde will inaugurate the academy on November 10. The academy was conceptualised about two years back but its inauguration was delayed due to various administrative reasons.

Apart from central police and paramilitary forces, state police personnel will be trained in public order management, riot control, crowd management, media management, disaster management, human rights laws and refresher courses for executive magistrates and senior police officers.

The centre, developed on a 25-acre land, is being raised as a Centre of Excellence for training and development of capability in public order management, riot control and crowd management.