If the person is still alive after all this torture, the police expect him/her to sign a confession regarding the crime that he/she is `suspected' of committing. That the police do not hesitate in resorting to such violent acts is evident from the number of custodial deaths that are reported in the city's police stations and prisons. In the second case of custody death in a month, a man held for alleged involvement in a counterfeit currencyracket died in police custody on August 15. Mohinder (45) was an assistant linesman in the Haryana State Electricity Board.

Earlier, on August 4, a proclaimed offender died in police custody at the Okhla police station. The police said that Yunus, a `bad character', died of heart attack. He was reportedly involved in a theft in Okhla in 1998 and had been absconding ever since. Custody deaths apart, two Dalit youths were allegedly tortured by the Ambedkar Nagar Police on August 4. Sudhir and Satbir were picked up by policemen from their houses at night. They were kept in custody and allegedly brutally beaten.

The grim state of affairs may finally improve, believes a small group of men who have put their heads together to help policemen think beyond their danda. Says NHRC Director General D R Karthikeyan, ``We intend to hold training programmes for the city police. We want the policemen -- at the level of constable, inspector and station house officer -- to use their brains instead of their dandas toinvestigate crime.''

Training programmes will be outlined in an international symposium on torture, organised by the rehabilitation council for torture victims and the NHRC. It will be held from September 22 to 25. ``Policemen will be taught to use alternative tools for investigation'', says Justice V S Malimath. ``For instance, our policemen should know that they can use forensic tools to ascertain the truth. The attitude needs to change.''

``The psychological consequences of the physical torture they inflict needs to be highlighted,'' argues Dr Jagdish Sobti of the Indian Medical Association. ``Policemen should be made to do the rounds of hospitals where torture victims are treated to help them realise what they have caused,'' he adds.

But do the police acknowledge the existence of a problem? Joint Commissioner (crime) K K Paul tells Indian Express, ``How can we say everything is running smoothly when there are reported cases of custodial torture? What the top ranks of the police need to do is to findout why this is happening.''

Says Assistant Commissioner of Police O P Mishra, ``Programmes that sensitise policemen against custody torture are always a big help as the concept of human rights is new to an average cop. As of now, we have had internally-managed programmes. Perhaps, policemen will be able to confide their problems and insecurities to trainers who do not belong to the police hierarchy. It is easier shedding inhibitions before strangers.''

However, several senior police officers, are sceptical about the effectiveness of such programmes. Says one, ``Our policemen attend several training programmes from time to time. Nothing changes. When they see a suspect criminal, their hand involuntarily raches for their danda.''