Published on: October 22, 2025

POLICE COMMEMORATION DAY

POLICE COMMEMORATION DAY

NEWS

  • Observed annually on October 21, Police Commemoration Day honours the valour of 10 policemen killed in 1959 Chinese firing at Hot Springs, Ladakh.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • 1959 Incident:
    • A patrol of 20 Indian police personnel at Hot Springs was attacked by Chinese troops.
    • 10 policemen martyred, 7 captured; bodies returned three weeks later and cremated with full honours.
  • Border Role:
    • Police forces guarded the 2,500-mile Indo-Tibet border before 1959.
  • Commemoration:
    • Memorial erected at Hot Springs; annual pilgrimage by police units.
    • Since 2012, the national-level Commemoration Parade is held at the National Police Memorial, Chanakyapuri.

 SMART POLICING INITIATIVES

  1. SMART Policing
  • Concept launched by PM in 2014 — acronym for Strict & Sensitive, Modern & Mobile, Alert & Accountable, Reliable & Responsive, Tech-savvy & Trained.
  • Focus: Cybercrime prevention, counter-extremism, drug de-addiction, and protection of vulnerable sections.
  1. ASUMP Scheme

(Assistance to States and UTs for Modernisation of Police)

  • Aims to strengthen police infrastructure with modern weapons, vehicles, and communication tech.
  • Each State/UT focuses yearly on one modernization component (e.g. cyber policing).
  1. ‘CyTrain’ Portal
  • MOOC-based online training platform for police/judicial officers on cybercrime, forensics, and investigation skills.
  1. CCPWC Scheme

(Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children)

  • Funds States/UTs for cyber labs, consultants, and LEA training.

 BEYOND THE NUGGET — NATIONAL POLICE MEMORIAL

  • Inaugurated in 2018 at Chanakyapuri, New Delhi.
  • Features:
    • 30-ft granite cenotaph symbolizing resilience.
    • Wall of Valour — names of martyrs since Independence.
    • Police Museum — chronicles history and evolution of Indian policing.