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The Empire
At Its Zenith |
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In
1856 the Governor-General promulgated an Act treating Calcutta
Police as a separate organization and S. Wauchope, who was then
the chief magistrate of Calcutta, was appointed as the first
commissioner of police. He had to face difficult days because
of the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857, the first upsurge against British
rule. He handled the situation ably and was knighted for his
achievement. During the incumbency of his successor V.H. Schalch
the Calcutta Police Act and the Calcutta Suburban Police Act,
which are still in force, were enacted in 1866. Two years earlier
(1864) the Commissioner of Police had become the Chairman of
the Justices as well and a Deputy Commissioner was appointed
to look after the executive police.
It was Sir Stuart Hogg who first set up the Detective Department
in Calcutta Police in November 1868 with A. Younan as the superintendent
and R. Lamb as the first-class inspector. Hogg was both the
commissioner of police and the chairman of the Calcutta Municipal
Corporation. His name is still remembered in the Hogg Market,
more popularly known as the New Market, one of the landmarks
of the city of Kolkata. Sir Fredrick Halliday, who was appointed
as the commissioner of police in 1906, also introduced several
changes in the administration of Calcutta Police including the
system of running a Control Room. His biggest achievement was
the creation of the Special Branch in June 1909. For his numerous
contributions to the growth of the city police, he may rightly
be called the father of modern Calcutta Police. During his tenure
Calcutta Police was divided into three town divisions and two
suburban divisions.
Another person who deserves mention is Sir Charles Augustus
Tegart, who headed the Detective Department and virtually controlled
the Special Branch since his joining Calcutta Police in 1902.
He was the first officer of the Indian Police (IP) in the organization
and on his report the Special Branch was created. He reorganized
the city police force and made it efficient. A highly decorated
officer, he was the Commissioner of Police in the years 1923-31
and was admired for keeping the city free from crime. However,
he was unpopular with freedom fighters and his encounters with
revolutionaries are a part of popular Bengali folklore. |
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