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Dr. A.K. Viswanathan
Born26 July 1964
Police career
DepartmentIndian Police Service
Rank Additional Director General of Police
AwardsPresident's Police Medal for Meritorious Service - 2006 President Police medal for Distinguished service in 2017.

Dr. A. K. Viswanathan, IPS is an Indian Police Service officer of the 1990 batch. He was Commissioner of Police, Greater Chennai from May 2017 to 1st July 2020. He will take charge as Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Operations, Chennai.[1]

Early life and education

Born in Ayyampalayam near Pollachi, in Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu, Viswanathan is a third-generation police officer in his family. His wife, Seema Agrawal is also an IPS officer and is presently an ADGP rank officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre.[2]

Viswanathan grew up mostly in small towns studying in 11 schools, finally in Government Higher Secondary School, Bhavani, presently in Erode district. He joined B.Sc Chemistry in Presidency College Chennai but dropped out after a year. He thereafter pursued a B.A. in History and graduated with distinction from Loyola College, Chennai. Subsequently, he studied law at the Madras Law College specialising in Insurance Law. After joining the IPS he did his Masters in Mercantile law from Annamalai University and completed his Ph.D in Criminal Law from the Madras University.

After completing the first year of B.L. in Madras Law College, he took a year off and went to New Delhi to prepare for the UPSC exams. He returned and continued the B.L. course and his efforts to get into the Civil Services. In the 1990 UPSC results, he secured the first rank from the state of Tamilnadu and opted for the Indian Police Service. He was allotted to the Tamil Nadu Cadre.

Career

On completion of his training, Viswanathan was posted as the Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Dharmapuri Sub Division, in Dharmapuri district. On promotion as the Superintendent of Police, he was posted as the Deputy Commissioner of Police Law and Order, Madurai city and later as the Superintendent of Police Madurai Rural District.

After the 14 February 1998 serial bomb blasts in Coimbatore City that resulted in the death of 69 people, Viswanathan was chosen to be posted as the Superintendent of Police, State Special Branch. He also had a brief stint in the Chennai City Traffic police. This was followed by a stint in the Central Bureau of Investigation ( CBI ) as the Superintendent of Police, Anti Corruption Branch, Tamil Nadu and, on promotion, as the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Special Crime Branch, Southern and Western regions of India. During 2002 he also held full additional charge of the Cochin Anti Corruption branch of CBI, looking after the Kerala state.

In 2006, he was posted as the DIG Intelligence Tamil Nadu, and this tenure witnessed the conflict between the Srilankan Army and the consequent fallouts in Tamil Nadu. During this time the activities of Muslim fundamentalists along with the prosecution of the accused Coimbatore serial bomb blast cases created quite a tension in the state and he played a role in providing intelligence inputs to handle the situation

On promotion as the Inspector General of police, he was posted as the Joint Director in the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti Corruption. Within a short time, he was posted as the Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order), Chennai City. Within three months of taking the post, there was a police action against lawyers in the Madras High Court campus on 19 February 2009. Lengthy legal procedures in the High Court and the Supreme Court followed this episode.

It was during this period that he was transferred and posted as the Joint Resident Commissioner, Tamil Nadu House. This was to enable him to take over as the officer on special duty (OSD) to the newly appointed Union Cabinet Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers M.K.Azhagiri. Within a month and a half after this, he opted to go back to the Tamil Nadu State. This invited the slapping of an enquiry by the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti Corruption for possession of assets disproportionate to the known sources of income. This was challenged in the Madras High Court by Viswanathan. After a detailed enquiry, the DVAC reported the allegations as false and closed the matter.

From TN House he was transferred as the Chief of Vigilance and Security in Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Papers Limited. After a year and half in TNPL Karur, he was posted as the Commissioner of police, Coimbatore City. He held this post three and half years as the longest serving Commissioner of Police, Coimbatore City. He took various steps to bring police and people closer and to remove the animosity and distrust for police that people generally got used to.[3] During his tenure, as per the National Crime Records Bureau data, crimes reduced four-fold in Coimbatore city. Also, while the Tamil Nadu came first In the recovery of stolen properties in the entire country at 66%, Coimbatore City[4] came first in the state recovering at 88% of the properties stolen.[5]

During this stint, he resided in the official residence of the Commissioner of Police. It was the same residence where his grandfather had worked as an orderly. It is noteworthy that Viswanathan's father also served in the Tamil Nadu Police Force making him a rare third-generation police official serving the country

Official residence of the Commissioner of Police

On promotion as the Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) in November 2015, he was posted as the Chief Vigilance Officer of the Metro Transport Corporation. After a week, he was made the ADGP Home Guards, Tamilnadu, where he served for about a year and a half. During the massive floods of Chennai in December 2015, he organized the Home Guards and volunteers and was instrumental in coordinating relief efforts including preparation and distribution of food for about 2 lakh people affected by the floods.[6][7]

Consequent to his latest posting,  Viswanathan  assumed charge as the Commissioner of Police, Greater Chennai Police on 15 May 2017.

Tenure as Police Commissioner of Chennai

The Greater Chennai Police under his stewardship has strived to maintain peace and law and order and more importantly, constantly innovated to embed contemporary technology in crime prevention and detection efforts thereby enabling a markedly increased digital footprint in police systems and processes in the city. [8]

Viswanathan was instrumental in bringing the Greater Chennai jurisdiction under complete CCTV surveillance under the ‘ Third Eye ‘ programme to enhance Crime prevention and detection in the city of Chennai.[9][10][11] This project envisaged the installation of over 250,000 CCTV cameras across Chennai, a first of its kind initiative.

Chennai Ranked #1 in CCTV Installations

Chennai has been ranked at #1 in the World amongst 130 Cities surveyed, in terms of the density of the number of CCTV installations[12][13].  The City is reported to have 657 CCTV’s per Sq. Km. of area.  From 30,000 CCTV cameras in 2016, the numbers swelled, during A K Viswanathan’s tenure, to 280,000 by December 2019 making this the largest deployment of such cameras for crime prevention and detection, anywhere in the world.

Chennai Ranked #1 in CCTV Camera Density
Chennai Ranked #1 in CCTV Camera Density

Digital Initiatives

Other significant digital initiatives implemented in his tenure include the Facetgr app, a unique face recognition app which enables instant identification and matching of suspects with reference to pre-existing police records.

The internet and social media, have in addition to benefits , spawned various newer types of crimes.  The Greater Chennai Police uses the very same social media to enhance citizen awareness of crimes such as victimisation, revenge actions, cyberstalking and phishing through short yet high impact video films to inculcate caution in use of social media.

His tenure marked by significant Digital Transformation initiatives of the Chennai City police has resulted in a higher level of peace and order in Chennai.  As per the NCRB data, Greater Chennai City was declared as the safest metropolitan city in the country for women and children.[14][15][16][17] K-4 Anna Nagar police station was adjudged the fifth best police station in the entire country consisting of 15,555 police stations.[18][19] Tamilnadu also was adjudged as the best state for the maintenance of law and order, by India Today in 2018 for which the contribution of Greater Chennai Police was substantial.[20][21][22][23][24]

Gifting of Pennycuick Bust to UK

A bust of Colonel John Pennycuick Gifted by A.K.Viswanathan

A white marble bust of Colonel John Pennycuick,[25] the British Army engineer who sold his property in England to build the Mullaperiyar dam, was gifted to his descendants by Dr Viswanathan. This statue was unveiled at St Peter's Church in Frimley, UK on 12 January 2019 by Indian High Commission Minister A S Rajan.

Awards and recognition

Viswanathan was the recipient of the President's Police Medal for Meritorious Service in 2006[26][citation needed] and the president police medal for Distinguished service in 2017. He also received an award for taking prompt action on CM special cell petitions in March 2018.

Jan 2018 - As a part of India Road Safety Mission a comprehensive Road Safety Index, rating of ten cities were undertaken with key parameters like traffic control, people safety, pedestrian rights, lighting and maintenance, heavy vehicle management, cleanliness etc. In this regard, Greater Chennai Traffic Police emerged as the winner and was awarded the "Best City – Motor Laws and Traffic Control". This award was presented to Greater Chennai Traffic Police by Shri. Nitin Jairam Gadkari, Hon’ble Minister for Road Transport & Highways, Shipping and Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation, Government of India, at New Delhi.

August 2019 – The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s Best Practices Award, Greater Chennai Police Commissionerate received the honour for installation of ‘Third Eye’ – the CCTV cameras and using Facetagr app for crime detection in the independence day celebrations held on 15 August 2019.[27]

The SKOCH awards [28] are conferred by an independent organisation recognising projects and institutions which undertake efforts in the areas of digital, financial and social inclusions for the betterment of the country and seek to celebrate human excellence and agents of change in the Indian society. These awards are based on evaluation by a National Jury, Peer Evaluation Process and Online voting. Under Viswanathan's leadership, the Chennai City Police won three awards in 2019 in recognition of their efforts and accomplishments.
a. Effective implementation of its CCTV surveillance project ‘Third Eye’ (Sep 2019).[29]
b. Introduction of digital technology for cashless payment of fine in the event of traffic violations. (Sep 2019).[30]
c. ‘Swachh Police Station’. For efforts in disposal of abandoned and unclaimed vehicles in stations and keeping the premises clean. (Nov 2019).[31]

References

  1. ^ R.sivaraman (2 July 2020). "Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal takes charge as new Chennai Police Commissioner". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 3 July 2020.
  2. ^ Kumar, S. Vijay (13 May 2017). "A.K.Viswanathan is Chennai's new Police Commissioner". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  3. ^ "Hindus, Muslims jointly attend peace meet - The Times of India". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  4. ^ "Crime rate down this year: Top cop - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  5. ^ "The New Indian Express-Coimbatore, 25082015 : readwhere". epaper.newindianexpress.com. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  6. ^ "How Tamil Nadu Home Guards play a vital role in protecting Chennai's residents". dna. 28 November 2015. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  7. ^ Thanthi TV, Special Report : Rainwater Surrounds AGS Colony, Velacherry - Thanthi TV, retrieved 23 December 2018
  8. ^ "Chennai: In filmy style, cops round up 75 gangsters in city". Deccan Chronicle. 8 February 2018. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  9. ^ "No place to hide: CCTV cameras every 50 m on city's roads in six months - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  10. ^ 100010509524078 (18 September 2018). "Chennai City police ropes in Vikram to spread message on CCTV surveillance". dtNext.in. Retrieved 23 December 2018. {{cite web}}: |last= has numeric name (help)
  11. ^ "CCTV coverage for entire city an obligation: CoP". The Hindu. Special Correspondent. 18 September 2018. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 23 December 2018.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  12. ^ Koop, Avery (1 January 2021). "Mapped: The Top Surveillance Cities Worldwide". Visual Capitalist. Retrieved 23 January 2021.
  13. ^ Kannan, Sindhu; Jan 4, Srikkanth D. / TNN / Updated:; 2021; Ist, 05:42. "Chennai has more CCTV cameras per sqkm than London, Beijing | Chennai News - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 23 January 2021. {{cite web}}: |last3= has numeric name (help)CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ "Tamil Nadu sees dip in crime against women, says NCRB; K Palaniswami credits police force". Firstpost. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  15. ^ "Chennai ranked safest metro for women: Tamil Nadu CM - Deccan Chronicle". DailyHunt. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  16. ^ Antony, Kathelene (28 June 2018). "Crime rate in state has come down, says Tamil Nadu CM". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  17. ^ J.Sampath. "Live Chennai: Safest city for women in India - Chennai secures the 1st place,Safest city for women in India,Safest city for women,women crimes,women Safety in Chennai". www.livechennai.com. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  18. ^ "Anna Nagar police station named fifth best in country - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  19. ^ Kurian, Shiba (26 January 2018). "K4 Police Station is the fifth best in India". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  20. ^ "'Service' day of police celebrated". epaper.timesgroup.com. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  21. ^ "Express Publications The New Indian Express-Chennai epaper dated Fri, 23 Nov 18". www.readwhere.com. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  22. ^ "Effective implementation of schemes helps TN to outperform other states: EPS". epaper.timesgroup.com. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  23. ^ "India Today State of the States 2018: Complete rankings". India Today. 22 November 2018. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  24. ^ "Tamil Nadu CM Palaniswami receives best-performing state award; showcases government's achievement". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  25. ^ "Police gift Pennycuick bust to UK - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  26. ^ "A K Viswanathan to get President's medal". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  27. ^ "Chennai Police receives CM's Best Practices Award". Business Standard. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
  28. ^ "About Skoch Award". SKOCH Award.
  29. ^ "Chennai Police receives SKOCH Award". The Hindu. Retrieved 26 September 2019.
  30. ^ "Introduction of digital technology". Daily thanthi. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  31. ^ "SKOCH award for clean stations". The Hindu. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
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