Trainee sub-inspectors at an exam at the Biju Patnaik State Police Academy in Bhubaneswar. Picture by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, March 24: The Biju Patnaik State Police Academy (BPSPA) in Bhubaneswar is planning to organise a special courses for policemen to develop their investigative skills. The courses would be organised under a plan of the union ministry of home affairs.

Officers of the BPSPA said the academy was the only one in the eastern region chosen for organising these courses. The courses, approved under the 11th five-year-plan would help create ‘specialist investigators’ in rank of sub-inspector and above.

The director of BPSPA, Satyajit Mohanty said the courses would be conducted for the year 2010-11 and 2011-12. “Although the ministry has listed 10 courses for the police investigators, our academy would organise four of these and we have planned to make it a 10 module program of two-year duration,” said Mohanty. The four courses are — investigation of murder and homicide cases, investigation of economic crimes, post blast investigation and investigation of cyber crime.

“We were given option of choosing any four courses and we opted for these giving emphasis on post blast investigation and investigation of cyber crime as these courses need more financial back up which we can get with the help of central government,” added Mohanty.

It has been targeted to create 250 to 300 officers specialised in these courses. So BPSPA has made 10 modules with each having 25 to 30 officers getting trained at a time. The sources said the proposed module would have one or two-week duration depending upon the program.

The courses would be fully funded by the bureau of police research and development.

The central government agency would bear the cost of boarding and lodging of the trainees and the trainers.

It would also provide the necessary teaching assistance such as educative materials, honorarium to faculty and other logistic facilities.