CATCH THEM YOUNG- A way to nation building

Recently, I watched the interview of Sir. P Vijayan IPS in a popular Malayalam TV program- recommended to me by one of my Nieces. Living away from Kerala, I am not in touch with the day to day happenings in the state, even after the frequent visit to manoramaonline or other popular news portals, I miss out the major chunk of news very often. The news of IBN – CNN person of the year, hadn't caught my attention until I saw this interview. Awards bring a visibility to the humanitarian efforts, giving the programs further momentum to move forward. Here is a police officer redefining the role of police in our society- effective policing according to him is not only keep the law and order in a state, but to also prevent the crime. The best way to prevent crime is to eliminate it. And that according to him is to work with young generation to make them respect and abide the law, help them realize their potential and channelize their energy. Each of the sixteen programs he started is one step closer to achieving this goal.

One of his major initiative is Student Police Cadet- an avenue where police officers work closely with students in their neighborhood. The project is a "school based youth development initiative that trains high school students to evolve as future leaders of a democratic society by inculcating within them respect for the law, discipline, civic sense, empathy for vulnerable sections of society and resistance to social evils." One of its indented benefits is the holistic development of the child- a child who will grow to lead with empathy towards fellow human beings and become a contributing member of the society. Another one is that, it helps the people see police officers in a different perspective- one that is involved in a constructive and positive relationship with the society, as a group of professionals trying to better the life of people. There are mutual benefits from this interactions. What began as a small initiative that is pilot tested in a couple of schools in 2006 has now developed into a program that involves 32,000 student police cadets spanning schools across Kerala. It is about to expand to other states in India and also to be adopted by other countries. What a noble idea to make a difference in the life of young people. I can see the student cadets as confident young leaders of tomorrow ready to tackle the future of our country.

Nanma was started by Mr. Vijayan when he was working as city commissioner of police in Cochin. He states in the interview that this project was inspired by an old mother and her adult special need son who were starving for days when he met them. On their first effort to help eradicate poverty, he collaborated with people from different walks of life and together they were able to transform a slum near Cochin by helping the kids with their education, ladies with some life skills, and by taking actions against criminals. They cleaned up the place, children focused on studies and many has been admitted to various professional courses. What is notable in this situation is that, he has recognized that a person alone can not make much of a difference- it should be a collective work of many people – his job was to connect people who are willing to help with people who needs help. Like this projects name- there are a lot of people full of “goodness(nanma)” in this world. The ones who contributed to this project strengthen our belief in humanity. This project also has expanded and successfully implemented across Kerala.

"Our Responsibility to Children" took shape while Mr Vijayan worked as a commissioner of police at Calicut. He was responding to the issue of rehabilitation of vulnerable youth who are caught in petty police cases. He realized that Sending them to Jail is a sure way of making them a hard core criminals, where as correcting them and guiding them is giving them a second chance. People turn to criminal activities mostly due to their circumstance. Through mentoring and guidance and by collaborating with social activists, educationists and police officers, Mr. Vijayan and his team were able to bring back a group of young children from the criminal world and rehabilitate them successfully. And then this program expanded to the neighboring districts and now the social justice department took it up and implemented it in every districts with a goal of “detecting socially deviant behavior in youngsters, including criminal offenses and illicit use of drugs among adolescents and to take corrective measures, evaluate and socially rehabilitate young offenders and  Creating a safety net for insulating children from criminal gangs"

Mr. Vijayan's initiatives mostly focus on children and their well being as that he believes is the best way to make a difference and help build a strong democratic nation. He has initiated about sixteen such programs as of now. Each of his programs are a response to solve a challenge that he encountered during his work. A true visionary, he realizes how to tap the potential of young children and uses it to bring the best in them. He credits it to his love for his own children. It might also have come from his own experiences as young child dealing with the adult world. He had entered into labor force much younger, leaving his studies behind at one point of time. Only a person full of love and compassion in his heart  would have such ideas – to relentlessly lead and thus better the life of people around. Firmly rooted in his humble beginnings, he is transforming the young generation. We can see the ripple effect of his works soon as these young people lead a life he envisions!

What can the rest of Kerala do to help the young generation to raise up to the challenges of the twenty first century? There is no shortage of talents for sure. We need more programs in schools where kids are taught to actively involve in community. Parent teacher associations can help connect kids with volunteering opportunities in the community. Thus we can instill a sense of responsibility and value system not only for few students who choose to be in Student Police Cadet or in NCC, but for every single child. It need not be expensive, a wide range of small programs can be implemented in schools across Kerala where students and community work together- just like how Police and student Police cadets work together. 

Equally important is educating parents on skills to help and discipline their children- which can be successfully taken up by PTA . There should be a constant interaction between school, parents and teachers, not only to see how well students are doing academically, but also to develop and implement programs that help parents and teachers. Schools should act as a support system for parents. Schools can accomplish this by connecting people who can help with those who needs help. 

There should be more programs where collaboration is encouraged between students than competition. Instead of thinking how can I get ahead, students should be taught to work together and collaborate and ask- how can we work together to solve a problem. That would help them look at the problems around and find the solution. The strength lies in numbers. 

About one third of its population between 10- 25 years of age - it is a blessing and a curse for India at the same time. A blessing if we can tap their energy and potential to progress our nation, a curse when its young generation become lazy, arrogant and self indulgent. Where our country will go depends upon how our young generation will shape up. People like Mr. Vijayan is helping our youngsters become a responsible, confident, productive and contributing members of society. I wish that many more of such people will come forward to work together for a better tomorrow.



-