The Chhattisgarh Police Headquarters has issued a circular regarding the weekly off for police personnel in the state.

According to the circular, field-duty police personnel would be entitled to a day’s leave every week while those deployed in Maoist-affected areas shall be granted an eight-day leave every three months.

The circular specifies that officers and personnel, ranging from constable to sub-inspector-rank, will be the first beneficiaries of the revised policy. It elaborates on the comprehensive process and conditions governing the utilisation of this leave.

Officers doing night shifts in police stations will now be granted a complete 24-hour leave once a week. This implies that post-night duty, officers will be on leave until the commencement of the next day’s duty shift.

In Maoist-affected and remote regions, a unique arrangement has been made for officers and personnel of the District Police Force. Instead of weekly leave, they will now receive an 8-day leave once every three months.

The circular mandates all SPs to prepare a roster for police personnel posted in their respective districts, specifying the day each officer will have their weekly off. For those unable to get weekly leave due to VIP protocol duty or law enforcement reasons, efforts will be made to grant leave within the same month. However, cancellation of leave in Maoist-affected areas will be decided by the unit chief.

Approval to cancel this leave will be granted by the relevant police superintendent, and subsequent information will be relayed to the Deputy Inspector General of Police and Range Inspector General of Police. The directive emphasises that weekly leave cannot be combined with other leave, nor carried forward or encashed.

Importantly, this directive excludes police officers posted in the offices of the DGP, ADGP, IGP, and senior officers of the Chhattisgarh Armed Forces. Similarly, police personnel posted in the Police Headquarters, Chhattisgarh Armed Forces Headquarters, Radio Headquarters, Training School, and Academy are exempted from this leave.