Language lessons for police personnel

Inspector General of Police Mahinda Balasuriya announced that 593 policemen and women who could officiate in Tamil would be posted to the police stations in the North and the East and upcountry areas shortly.

The Police chief made this announcement at the media briefing at the Police Headquarters last week.

"A large number of police personnel of all ranks were trained in Tamil language. The training program was of five months duration and 593 have successfully completed their training. By the end of December, they would be available to serve in the police areas where Tamils form the majority.

"The police personnel who had undergone training in Tamil are capable of speaking, writing and taking down reports and complaints in Tamil, "the IGP said.

He said the Police Department will train 1,200 police personnel per year so that there will be 6,000 police personnel in five years who could handle police affairs in Tamil.

Apart from training the police personnel in Tamil, they will also be made fluent in all three languages. Steps would also be taken to improve their computer literacy.