P Vijayan (born 4 February 1968), is the
Inspector General of Police
An Inspector General of Police is a senior police officer in the police force or police service of several nations. The rank usually refers to the head of a large regional command within a police service, and in many countries refers to the most se ...
. He is a 1999 batch official of the
Indian Police Service
The Indian Police Service ( IPS) is a civil service under the All India Services. It replaced the Indian Imperial Police in 1948, a year after India became independent from the British Raj.
Along with the Indian Administrative Service (IAS ...
. He is the founder and chief architect of the Student Police Cadet Project, a youth development initiative.
Presently, Vijayan is the IG of Anti Terrorist Squad and Managing Director of Kerala Books and Publications Society.
Early life and education
Puthiyottil Vijayan was born on 4 February 1968 in a not-so-affluent family in a remote hamlet called Puthoormadam near
Kozhikode
Kozhikode (), also known in English as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. It has a corporation limit population of 609,224 and a metropolitan population of more than 2 million, making it the second la ...
in
North Kerala
North Malabar refers to the geographic area of southwest India covering the state of Kerala's present day Kasaragod, Kannur, and Wayanad districts, and the taluks of Vatakara, Koyilandy, and Thamarassery in the Kozhikode District of Kerala and t ...
. He is the third child of seven siblings.
Vijayan studied in High School at Pantheerankavu High School, Kozhikode. When he failed to clear the
Secondary School Leaving Certificate
The Secondary School Leaving Certificate (commonly referred to as SSLC) is a certification obtained by a student on successful completion of an examination at the end of study at the secondary schooling level in India. The SSLC is obtained o ...
exam on his first attempt, he had to take up employment in construction sites at an early age. It was only after a gap of two years that he managed to pass this exam. Determined to earn a college degree, he set up a small scale soap manufacturing unit and took classes for school children.
Vijayan went on to do an MA and MPhil in economics from
Calicut University
The University of Calicut, also known as Calicut University, is a state-run public university headquartered at Tenhipalam in Malappuram district of the state of Kerala, India. Established in 1968, it is the first university to be set up in nor ...
, and finally passed the Civil Services examination in 1999 to join the IPS.
Career
IPS Officer
In October 2001 he began his policing career as Assistant Police Superintendent (Kanhangad) in
Kasaragod
Kasaragod () is a municipal town and administrative headquarters of Kasaragod district in the state of Kerala, India. Established in 1966, Kasaragod was the first municipal town in the district. It is the northernmost district of Kerala and ...
District. He has been District Police Chief of several districts including Kasaragod, Thiruvananthapuram Rural, Malappuram, Ernakulam Rural and was the first to have served as Commissioner of Police in all four Commissionerates in the state, viz. Thiruvananthapuram,
Kozhikode
Kozhikode (), also known in English as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. It has a corporation limit population of 609,224 and a metropolitan population of more than 2 million, making it the second la ...
,
Thrissur
Thrissur (), formerly Trichur, also known by its historical name Thrissivaperur, is a city and the headquarters of the Thrissur district in Kerala, India. It is the third largest urban agglomeration in Kerala after Kochi and Kozhikode, and t ...
and
Kochi
Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...
.
Vijayan headed the police organization of
Thiruvananthapuram
Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...
, the capital city of the state, as its
Police Commissioner.
He also had held simultaneous charge as Deputy Inspector General of Police (Battalions) overseeing all Police Battalions in Kerala, as well as official-in-charge of the Kerala Railway Police while holding the position of DIG (Intelligence).
In acknowledgement of his efforts to promote a drug-free community, in particular among youth, he was awarded a fellowship in 2013 to attend the Global Tobacco Control Leadership Programme at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Washington DC, USA.
Investigating officer
A Kerala cadre police official, Vijayan led the teams that investigated the Kalamassery Bus Burning case, the Sabarimala Thanthri case, the
Chelembra bank robbery, and the email threat case against the Prime Minister of India.
Contributions
Vijayan's community initiatives include a Police Call Centre at Kozhikode, and Pink Autos programme in Thiruvananthapuram for safe travel by women. He also initiated an innovative "Punyam Poonkavanam" project to promote waste cleanup at the Sabarimala pilgrimage site and a Traffic Safety & Learning Centre at Thrissur, and School Protection Groups.
In August 2005, Vijayan, as Commissioner of Police, Kochi City, constituted a team of "Shadow Police" as the first of its kind in the State. Subsequently, such units have been formed and are functional in Kozhikode, Thrissur and Trivandrum. He also initiated the State Temple anti-Theft Squad in Kerala.
In acknowledgement of his efforts to promote a drug-free community, Vijayan was awarded a fellowship in 2013 to attend the Global Tobacco Control Leadership Programme at
Johns Hopkins
Johns Hopkins (May 19, 1795 – December 24, 1873) was an American merchant, investor, and philanthropist. Born on a plantation, he left his home to start a career at the age of 17, and settled in Baltimore, Maryland where he remained for most ...
Bloomberg Institute for Public Health in Washington DC, USA.
Subsequently, Vijayan has been designated as state coordinator to lead the statewide school-level anti-drug abuse campaign of Government of Kerala, viz. "Safe Campus Clean Campus"
Youth initiatives
Early in his professional career, Vijayan realised that it was necessary for police to connect with youth in a healthy and positive manner. This would not only create a good image of the police in young minds, but also channel the adolescent fascination with authority in a positive and productive manner.
Thus, Vijayan launched a
Student Police Cadet Project
The Student Police Cadet (SPC) Project is a high school-based initiative by Kerala Police, implemented jointly by the Departments of Home and Education, and supported by Departments of Transport, Forest, Excise and Local Self-Government. Stude ...
in August 2010 in 127 schools across Kerala, with 11,176 students - both boys and girls - enrolled as Cadets (G.O (P) No 121/2010/Home dtd 29-05-2010). The project has now been expanded to a statewide network of 433 schools with a combined strength of nearly 35,000 SPCs, being trained by over 850 existing teachers and nearly 1,500 officers of Kerala Police. This programme is planned for expansion throughout India.
As Kozhikode City Police Commissioner, Vijayan initiated the Our Responsibility to Children (ORC) project to address the increasing socially deviant behaviour among adolescents. The success of the project prompted Government of Kerala to take it up in all districts, under the aegis of the Kerala Social Security Mission.
Vijayan is also founder of the Police Youth Football Academy, a football programme for youth at Thrissur. He then founded a similar academy at Thiruvananthapuram.
Personal life
Vijayan is married to Dr Beena IAS, a medical doctor by training and a civil servant (Kerala cadre 1999) by profession, and the couple have two school-going children. In 2008, Vijayan And Beena were recognised as the Model Official Couple by Thrissur-based South Indian Bank Ltd.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vijayan, P.
Indian police officers
Living people
1968 births
Civil Servants from Kerala