Police Commissioner Yudhvir Singh Dadwal recently wrote to his top officers seeking their suggestions on the plan, Newsline has learnt.

A police source said the idea to beef up the crack unit emerged after the Centre asked all states to form their own version of elite police units, on the lines of American police departments’ SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics) commando unit, after the Mumbai siege last November. In the US, these commandos are trained to perform high-risk operations that fall outside the ambit of regular patrol officers — serving high-risk arrest warrants, hostage rescue, counter-terrorism, and engaging heavily-armed criminals among others.

In an informal letter to his top officers on January 21, Dadwal suggested that former Armymen with the rank of Subedars could be eligible for Sub-Inspectors, Lieutenant/Captain-rank personnel could be eligible for Inspectors, Major-rank ex-officers could be Assistant Commissioners of Police, and former officers of Lieutenant Colonel rank could be considered for DCPs’ posts in the proposed crack Delhi Police unit.

The letter said former Armymen, or any other personnel with specialised training from the NSG and other paramilitary forces, are suitable for the job. It said these ex-servicemen could be hired on an annual contract, extendable as per needs and circumstances.

A senior police officer (name withheld on request) said the police brass is mulling over the idea. “Such teams would have the capability of rapid mobilisation, deployment and would have specialised arms, training, communications and protective devices,” the officer said.

CRACK SHOT SWAT
* First SWAT (Special Weapons And Tactics) team established in Los Angeles Police Department in the 1960s
* First significant deployment of LAPD’s SWAT unit was on December 9, 1969: in a four-hour confrontation with members of the Black Panthers
* SWAT teams use a wide array of weapons; the most common weapons include submachine guns, assault rifles, shotguns, and sniper rifles
* Similar elite tactical units in other areas are South Australian STAR Force (Special Tasks and Rescue), London’s C019 and Taiwan’s Thunder Squad.