Owing to the severe stress that the city police face, zone I police unit has started taking daily sessions on ‘Dnyaneshwari Paath’ (reading of the spiritual book) at every police station under its jurisdiction. Police constables believe it helps them to take decisions with a calm and composed mind frame.
The initiative was taken up by DCP of zone one, Ravindra Shisave, in order to instill positive feelings and guidance to the junior police officers who are always under stress due to their workload. There have also been cases in the recent times of policemen going into depression and even committing suicide because of excess workload and stress. Thus, this initiative is aimed at de-stressing and motivating the policemen.
Stressing on the positive effects of the ‘Dnyaneshwari Paath’, Mr Shisave said, “It is very important to maintain effective communication with every police employee in our jurisdiction. If we get to know about the problems that our staff face then we will be able to help them solve it and thus reduce their stress levels and ours too. It is essential for them to be stress free for them to work efficiently.”
Elaborating on reading of spiritual texts, the officer said that Dyaneshwari is an appropriate text to motivate policemen. “I have chosen Dyaneshwari because the poems in it depict the meaning of person’s life. It talks about the importance of our good work,” Mr Shivase said.
One of the police officers, a regular at these reading sessions, said, “It has been two months since we have been carrying out these sessions and because of it our behaviour towards each other has changed a lot. Dyaneshwari guides us on how to live our lives. It’s really inspiring for our group. We used to fight on insignificant topics but now everyone supports each other.”
