Security of Housing Societies II NISSMAT Podcast II MUST WATCH

Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening everyone. I wish a warm welcome to all who are watching this NISSMAT podcast on the security of housing societies. NISSMAT, the National Institute of Security, Safety Management, and Applied Technology, was established in the year 1990 and has grown over three decades into one of India's foremost think tanks and training institutions in the field of security, safety, and applied technology.

Today, we shall discuss the security of housing societies. It's a subject which is close to everyone's heart because we all stay in urban areas today, and housing societies is one of the most common things that we sort of experience in the way we live today. We're going to have a frank, practical, and I hope a very useful conversation on the security of housing colonies. A subject that touches every one of us who lives in a residential society, whether it's gated or otherwise. If you live in a flat, a colony, an apartment complex, or even a standalone house in a residential neighborhood, what we discuss today is directly relevant to you and your family's safety. So, please like this podcast, share it with your neighbors and your other neighborhood groups, and do subscribe to the NISSMAT channel so you never miss a conversation like this.

I'm privileged to be joined today by Mr. C. Paul Singh who's president of NISSMAT and the former Inspector General of Police Punjab who raised the Rapid Action Force for the government of India. He also raised the Internal Security Academy at Mount Abu. We'll begin by asking the first question to the president. Sir, you spent a distinguished career in law enforcement including raising the Rapid Action Force. From your experience on the ground, how serious is the security threat to residential colonies in urban areas today? And in your honest assessment, are we as residents taking it seriously enough?

Thank you very much indeed for your introduction, Pawan ji. The threat is indeed very serious. I tell you why. Because of, you know, growing urbanization and the mobilization of population to urban and semi-urban area from rural area have increased this vulnerability of these housing colonies. With the result that the housing colonies particularly, maybe they are gated, maybe they are ungated, they require a very, very special attention not only by the security agencies which are posted there, not only by the resident welfare association, not only by the people who are having that particular colony under their management, but also by the local police. Because there can be many people, many threats lurking large, looming large in the housing colony. So, therefore, there is need of giving special attention, particularly to the housing colonies, irrespective of whether they are gated or ungated.

As far as ungated are concerned, of course, the threat is more. As far as gated are concerned, there's a little less threat because there's a controlled entry, etc. And in ungated, their perimeter walls are not there properly, and there's a lot of vulnerable point from where the people can get into suspicious crack and get into and create problem. While in the gated, at least they have to pass through a particular area, and then there's a perimeter wall also. So, there is definitely lesser threat as far as the gated localities are concerned, but the vulnerability is both for ungated and gated, unless we have a proper layered, structured security system, coordination of resident welfare association, coordination with the management, and liaison with the police. So, I definitely feel that today, as we stand, that this is one of the very major issues for all of us to consider because most of us today stay in the housing colonies. There are a few people, of course, who may be having their bungalows, etc., but more than all the middle class and over above middle class stay in these housing colonies.

So, therefore, private security and the people's security needs to be particularly attentive to these housing colonies. The role, particularly, of the private security is very important. Private security guards, you know, they constitute as actually the first visible layer.

Sir, can I interrupt here, sir? I think also one of the things is because we haven't experienced a personal problem, so we think there is no problem. So, unless a resident experiences a problem personally, only then he starts to think that there can be a problem and I've seen this occur with majority of the residents. They feel when you talk to them, they feel this is not a problem because they haven't experienced it.

Absolutely correct. In fact, the difficulty is unless you experience, you don't realize even the importance of it. You may be not staying in a housing colony. I stay in a housing colony, in a guarded housing colony. I know very well. They asked me sometime back that you could come and advise. When I have talked to them, they hardly had realized that what threats could be there. I told them what crisscross patrolling is there, what focal point patrolling is, and how these can be managed. All these things when I told them, "The search to give us a full-fledged paper on that." Well, I'm trying to endorse your view that unless you feel the threat, unless you have either experienced, if not experienced, at least you realize the threat, you cannot give importance to guard or safeguard this housing colony. I agree with you on that.

Well, what are the other thing is, you know, the resident welfare association is the backbone of any colony's security system. And yet in most RWAs across India, security is discussed only after an incident has occurred. Well, that is what. That is why. Generally, we need to plan before something happens. But here we are always sort of reacting to a situation rather than planning before it.

You see, that is why we are here today at least to enlighten people not only on the basis of our experience, but the basis of experience of others also who have shared their experience with us. You are right. As far as resident welfare association is concerned, they have become, I will not condemn them, but they more become more of a, you know, sort of the political organization. One organization is already working there. The other people are saying, "Oh, we want to get into that." The third people are, so elections are there and in the election they go about getting votes, etc. So, this is not a, I mean they are concerned because more of a public relation rather than security of a particular housing colony.

While the role of resident welfare association in implementing the security and meeting the challenges and threats is very important. Unless the resident welfare association coordinates, conducts frequent periodical audits of the security group which is present there. Unless the resident welfare association has a proper liaison with the local police. Unless the resident welfare association realizes the vulnerabilities which are not only on the gate but inside also the colony. Where are the vulnerabilities? What are the parking places? Which are the lift places? Which are the places which should be guarded? So, this all is required to be known to the resident welfare association so that they coordinate properly and then conduct frequent audit. Frequent is not one. There should be periodic audit that, "All right, we had pointed out this deficiency in a particular private security agency or in general amongst the people's attitude towards security, how far they have now implemented those points."

So, this frequent audits, frequent checks, then constitution of subcommittees who are concerned only with the security. There are number of people in any housing colony who may have experience in the security. So, they have to get into their own subcommittee and then implement it. So, you are right. The welfare association, so-called resident welfare association, they are called as welfare association. The welfare may be in terms of just, you know, being there and having some housey or some tambola or something like that. That is the concern which normally they have, entertainment. I don't deny that they should be there. But, the question is the security, which is the most important aspect of today's life, is not concerned. They are not concerned much.

I think, you know, fellowship is a very important ingredient of a society, especially a residential welfare association. So, having all these entertainment things is also a way to bind the community together. And if in this way we can sort of highlight the problems of security, maybe a concerted effort by everyone can help mitigate security issues in a colony.

I have one or two other suggestions. You see, like you mentioned the dedicated security subcommittee. You know, sometimes we feel that, you know, taking a security decision is the prerogative of only the president of the association. It is the subcommittee who should go into the pros and cons of a problem and then take a considered decision. And that decision is not only in terms of physical security, it's today in terms of electronic security, gate control measures, or whatever else may come in.

So, there are new technologies which are stepping in every day. And they must also write out a security policy document. You see, without it, I have seen you can employ security, but the security does not know what to do because there is a separate rule for the president, separate for the secretary, and there are too many bosses who are trying to sort of manage the security. And every resident who's contributing a few rupees to the security association feels that he has the right to direct the security and it works to cross purposes. So, this is one of the other issues that I feel, you know, the resident welfare associations must sort of look at.

Another issue that I have with the security is the security budgets. You say we are going, I mean, a little faster towards that. I am of the view you are 100% right. Of course, we have to have these concerns and the welfare association should have these concerns and there should be tech, as you say, we have to be technically savvy. We have to say what technical equipments are available, they should be installed, at what cost they can be installed and how they can be installed, where they can be installed.

All right, this is where we are going ahead. I am saying you for the time being leave aside the tech requirement. You talk of the total only about the physical presence of the private security guard there. Now, this constitute the first visible there as far as I concerned for the protection of the most of the housing colonies.

But, let me just intervene up here and ask a difficult question actually. The security guard at the gate of most housing colonies in India are at substantially lower wage than what normally can be available in the market. They generally work a 12-hour shift. They do not have the requisite training to be guarding a housing society. And there's a very large turnover of the security guards in the housing society. So, therefore for someone who's just come in new to point out or find out as to who is authorized to be in the colony, who is not authorized to be in the colony? It poses a lot of questions. How do you think you can fix this problem? And what would your advice be to the RWA to fix this problem? What would they do?

I think we should, as far as we are concerned for today's part of us, let us start with the first one. Let us start with the first one as far as physical security is concerned. In any organization, even in the police, even the army, the physical presence, then we go advance. The physical presence, you see, is to be understood, what is a physical presence.

By posting some guards who are neither trained, nor have they mandate of PSARA, nor they have training of PSARA, nor they are paid wages of PSARA, and then you posted there and ask them to guard. First of all is the physical presence of people who are there. What are the requirement? They are supposed there on the guard. 8 hours is the duty, they'll be 12 hours. Then there is such a pay structure. What else pay structure laid down, at least comply with that. The most of the managements, they somehow or the other do not go in consonance with what is laid down in the PSARA and all. And they just go ahead, all right, you pay them 8,000 or 10,000 for 12 hours duty. How can you manage a good guard even physically?

So first of all is that we have to post the guards there who are properly trained under the PSARA structure training. Second, that first of PSARA structure training only if they are PSARA mandate, if they are having the PSARA lessons. Most of the housing colony you go and watch, I think out of 10 housing colony, I can tell you they're not more than three who are having the PSARA license.

That is actually related to the amount of money that the resident welfare association is prepared to spend on security. So, if your budget is low, but your need for the number of people is large, what you end up is hiring cheap labor to protect you or to defend you from your colony. So, you're never going to have the right type of people to protect your interests.

I'll tell you very interesting phenomena. I mean, practical phenomena. And I have not only experienced, of course I'm experiencing it in the housing colony, but even otherwise in certain forces or even trained forces sometime, they do not understand what is the technical requirement of a particular thing.

For example, patrolling. We are having the patrolling. What type of patrolling you're having? Person is going from this place to that place, this place to that place. What is a good idea? Have you given the focal point? Have you pointed out which particular area A, B, C, D are vulnerable in particular housing colony? What particular area should be pointed out as a center or a focal point? That how do you want that this guard should start, this party of one or two should start from this place, go to other focal point, and the other focal point the bar should start at. So, there's a crisscross patrol. So, that they meet each other. They remain alert. They also pass on the information from that particular area to the other bar or other bar. So, they sort of, and also, it reduces, you know, people feel they're very alert. Because they're having that patrolling which is crisscross patrolling. They're going one place to other place.

This sort of focal point patrolling, crisscross patrolling even was introduced in the time of height of terrorism. Because you have a normal patrolling. What is normal patrolling? Unless you understand where the patrolling is being conducted, how the patrolling. I'm not asking a cross something, you know, soldiers to come here and all. I want the private security guard can be briefed. All right, this is your point, from here these two people will go here, they will come here and come, and then here you, when you come back, you tick mark that this particular area has been covered by you.

Next, second point. I asked them, all right, let us say you have this sort of crisscross patrolling, then there's no manpower. So I said I'm not asking for manpower. Whatever manpower you have, have you utilized that manpower in a proper way?

So my submission is that not only they are, most of them are not trained, they are not paid adequately, they are not looked after adequately, their wages are less than labor. Some of them are just wearing shoes which have not been given even by them. They say, I ask them.

So like you said training, but I would blame the RWAs because they do not know as to what instructions to pass to the guard themselves. You see, like I mentioned earlier, many residents who try to become bosses of the association pass instructions which are contrary to what the other residents may have said. So there's got to be one single point of contact in the RWA who manages the security. If there are too many people trying to sort of look at the same thing, there's about to be an issue and a problem.

So the question is Pawan ji, the critical responsibility as you call it, sometime we call it responsibility, sometime I call it critical responsibility. The critical responsibility of the guards, the critical responsibility of the people who are managing the guards and particularly in the vulnerable areas is not realized. They just posted in the housing colony and let them do what they are doing is they're walking here to there. They're there and they're pushing away the dogs, they're pushing away the animals, but they are not bothered about the housing colony personal who are staying here.

Sometime I ask them how they are coming, some of the people, how they are coming just at random. How they are entering there? Sir, our boom barrier is broken. Damn it, boom barrier is broken. That is only for the vehicle to come in. How these people are moving about as they are suspicious character. How do we know that they are suspicious character?

A guard who does not know anything, he can, or the residents of the society, he cannot spot a stranger inside. So, to spot a stranger, you must know as to who the residents are. And if your people are changing frequently, the ability of a guard to spot a stranger becomes almost negligible.

And this kind of a knowledge, you know, takes fair number of months to build. And then, low wages to these people also make them susceptible to bribery and collusion. And it's a economic reality, it's not something that we can point a finger at, but this is something that only the RWA can fix, is pay adequate amount of money as per the labor laws so that they can also expect a fair amount of security from the people that they employ.

Suddenly. Suddenly. And you mentioned in your introduction a little bit about technology. I think now when we are talking of AI and all.

Sir, before we go on to technology, sir, you see, I also feel that the resident welfare associations should pay particular attention to where, let's say, a particular person or a guard should stand. What are the facilities that he has in summer months in filtering heat? He should at least have a fan and a cooler. He should have a place where he can go and use the toilet. He should know where he can have drinking water. He should know if he has to sit, where does he sit? You know, and all these things if they are not taken care of, you end up with security which is substandard.

Absolutely. That means you start A, the physical fitness. B, what are the basic amenities provided to them? C, whether they have got some basic training or some structure training. C, have you given them a proper area of responsibility? D, what is the relationship between RWA and the security guards or the security group? How often the RWA interacts with the security groups?

Then over and above everything, a little bit of training in terms of, even you have a minimum number of people, I tell you, sir. Minimum number of people can be as effective as double the strength if they are trained properly, if they are taught properly, if they are instructed properly. And once you tell them, "Okay." If they are proper, robust, healthy, and you tell them, they will understand it.

The idea is, as you rightly point, they go from one place to another and they do not know where to ease themselves, where to go for even urinating. A full night guard is there. What is he doing? He is only whistling around. Why is whistling, sir? To keep alert. As a home they are keeping alert. They are keeping alert the since the person was sleeping in the residential colony.

I've seen some of the resident welfare association instructing guards that when you are going up patrolling so that, you know, people can make out that you are there. We are going back to talk, you know, that it is almost 50, 60, 70 years ago. I just want to like to emphasize here about your knowledge and my knowledge about it.

When PSARA was introduced, what was the reason behind it? The same thing, that they were having lot number of people absolutely untrained guarding companies with them, particularly in the area like Bihar. They used to army sort of thing. The government wanted to regulate them and in the process of regulating they laid down certain points and introduced private security agency regulation. But still the condition as you and me have discussed continues the same. They are more like, you know, in one pocket he is paid 10,000, in the same pocket somewhere else he is being 8,000. In some other pocket he is not paid at all for two months.

It is also the housing societies which are at fault. I recently had a proposal for one of the housing colonies. We need 120 guards to be deployed but we shall pay you after 60 days.

It means that the security company is going to be a funding situation for the RWA because you first provide 30 days of service. Then you present a bill and after the bill is presented they will pay you after 60 days. That means you are down by 90 days and in those 90 days you are supposed to pay wages, provident fund, ESI, labor welfare fund and GST. If you know, if you are using the security organization or the security organization decides to get used as a bank for the RWA, I think it's foolishness. I think that how can even a security agency manage to pay them when you are getting their pay or their wages after 60 days? Who will pay them for those 60 days? And over and above, despite all the acts being enacted that you should pay immediately the contract labor, hardly there is any implementation.

So, one of the things that, you know, the government is missing out is making sure that the wages to the... They force the contractor to pay, but they're not forcing the principal employer to pay on time to the contractor so that the contractor can fulfill obligations. This is where the missing link is today and I feel that this is the area where government attention should be brought in.

Absolutely. Because you see, we always tend to blame the security guard has not done this, security guard has not done that. But the poor security guard does not have the wherewithal to do anything because of the financial conditions he's being subjected to. And because of lack of jobs or whatever, he gets forced into doing something which probably is not his desire also.

Another very interesting and very important point is that is how far they involve the local police. I mean, you are expect for them to have the height of efficiency, but they do not have any powers. They are not involved in the local police. In fact, the legal authority which is there with the local police can be used only by the local police. Now, how can you use the guards?

We had once discussed that these guards can be just eyes and ears for the local police. They can work as silent sentinels for the local police. These private guards, when at all, whatever strength, whatever structure they have, whatever deficiencies they have, at least they can work as eyes and ears for the local police. And the legal authority should remain in touch with them or they should remain in touch with the legal authority so that they work as silent sentinels for the police. In case they note something, in case they come to know there is some suspicious movement, in case they come to know there are some suspicious characters moving about, then given the relatively, you know, low pay, given relatively low training, at least let them have the police liaison.

Now, unfortunately, the police also knows, sir, that the ratio, as you know, police population ratio is very, very inadequate in our country. Everywhere you cannot have the police. And it's absolutely impossible to place police inside the housing colony. They also know, we also know the population ratio vis-a-vis the availability of police is far, far less compared to any international standards in our country.

So, when they are not there, how to use these sentinels, these quiet people that are sitting all around you, private security guard, after some training, some security ordered, some implemented, something like implementation of PSARA, etc., still they are not being used to the extent they are to be used. Because if they are used as a silent sentinel, they'll inform to their security supervisor, who in turn may be informing to the RWA or RWA may in turn inform to the local police, particular area police, and they should keep a watch in that area.

What has happened, sir, there is construction going on in certain housing colonies. Lot of construction is going on in certain gated housing colonies. How many labor people come inside cannot be a measure. Nobody is verified. Not that one is a, nobody is verified. Out of them I have observed many a time in many housing colonies that some people are really suspicious. But your guard cannot do anything unless they have a liaison with the RWA and resident welfare association in terms and forms that, all right, you cannot check every contractual labor. At least let the police know that this particular area they are susceptible, they are suspect, so that if they are suspect it is a duty of the police itself to come and start watching, keeping a watch over them.

So my point is that even as a silent sentinels of the security they are used, they can be great help to the local police. And the local police authorities can have a liaison or the RWA can have a liaison with the local police. This is another very important point.

Yeah, my honest assessment actually is that the relationship between most RWAs and the local police station is very poor. And the fault actually lies on both the sides. Most RWAs approach the police only when something has gone wrong. At which point the relationship is adversarial and not collaborative. Most police stations have no systematic record of which colonies are registered, who the RWA contacts are, who's the president, and who are the people in the colony that can make a difference.

And you know what the thing should look like. The RWA president has personally met the SHO, the beat constable, and the crime prevention officers. The colony is formally registered. This is a simple letter, but it accountability on both sides. Quarterly liaison meetings are held between the RWA and the concerned police station. The beat officer's personal mobile number is displayed at the security cabin, not just as a generic helpline, but as a point of contact where help can be sort of garnered whenever required. And when you do all these things, and when you walk into a police station for the first time, do not go empty-handed. Take a brief one-page note of your colony, your name, address, so that, you know, there is contact that is established. And I think meeting the SHO, meeting the police officers, and exchanging some messages, at least having the telephone number in case of a problem, a WhatsApp message, you know, these are the things that one needs to build up in and around any housing.

At one point, to say in a few words, it was told to the housing colonies management that to improve the security system in the housing colony, you should adopt at least a word known as coordinated security framework. Coordinated security framework doesn't mean only coordinated security framework and say what. Coordinated framework should involve resident welfare association, private security itself, the guard which is being provided private security, the local police, and also the local management of that housing colony. So that they coordinate with each other and are able to see what are the demands, what are the deficiency, and what is the role being given to this particular area guard.

Accountability may be given. We always say this, you do this, you do that, without giving them the proper wages, without even giving them a care which they should have as a personal care to the extent of a human being. We expect that they should be able to do everything and everything lies on the private security. I am of the view no doubt there are a lot of deficiency in the private security guards. Lot of deficiency and they need improvement and we already discussed them. Some of them are not, under some are trained, some of them are but not paid properly. There's a lot of things.

But ultimately somebody has to do now. But who is to do? I said the word is coordinated. This is what coordination. You have to teach them. This is mean coordination. Sir, we have to busy in other work. What other work? We are looking after park, this thing, that thing. Okay, that means the security is only secondary importance for you. No, no, no, the security people look after the parks also. What a what park? So that no cattle goes inside. Look at it. That is the security. The security person should go with a dog, with a lathi and try to push out the cattle which has gone to a park.

So my point is this sort of coordination is totally lacking. In addition to this I am not talking about physical. Then you have referred to technical requirement, the My Gate security nowadays.

Can I come to the technical requirement later, because I have a very important question which from your police perspective you'd be able to give a better insight. And this is a topic that generally people don't like to discuss. People want to keep it under the carpet. And it makes many residents uncomfortable. And so I'm going to ask this question from you and your wisdom on this.

Studies have consistently shown that a significant portion of thefts, burglaries, and crimes in residential colonies involve an insider, a domestic worker, a contractor, a delivery person, or maybe even a guard, or the sweepers on the road, or the cleaning staff. From your years of experience in criminal investigation, sir, how common is this insider threat in housing colonies across India? And what are the two or three practical steps that residents and RWAs should take to mitigate this risk?

I already discussed with you, and I'll still emphasize that all these points will be there taken into consideration once every element of this total structure system realizes this responsibility. You say A, B, C, D, okay. Then the question will, person doesn't want to go to a police station. Because this is the behavior pattern of a local police will not be proper. So, there is question of, I have again and again said, a very, very structured, coordinated approach between the agencies which are dealing with the security. What are these agencies? I have already repeated at the past.

You know, some of the problems that I have noticed, you know, in these colonies and relating to this question is domestic workers are the most common vector. Not because they are inherently untrustworthy, but because the system around them has no checks. And today, we are succumbing to the fact that we want a domestic person to help us, but we can't find a person to help us. Correct. And therefore, we are willing to let go certain checks that we would ordinarily have on other people, but not on our domestic servants. Then, a major issue comes up is a domestic worker who leaves your employment, finds employment in a neighbor's house almost instantly. And then, you know, there are delivery personnel, plumbers, electricians, and other service workers who are also frequently used as intelligence gatherers before a crime occurs. So, how do you mitigate this problem, sir? What do you think, in your opinion as a police officer, what would you advise the RWA?

Your observations are 100% correct. The remedy is difficult. The remedy is unless all people, all agencies realize their responsibility towards the security problem, maybe anywhere. I'm not talking totally in the housing colony. Also, of course, housing colony is today's subject where I'm discussing about housing colony.

But anywhere, and even under the normal law, if something is happening which is suspicious or which is illegal, a private person under law is supposed to inform the authority. If you find somebody is going to put a house into arson or etc. or has intention arson, as a private person, you are legally bound to inform the police. Do we do? No. Although we have authority under law to inform them. We never do because we ultimately say, "Humne kya lena hai?"

My question is, sir, the question is not only here, the legal responsibility, also question is moral responsibility. We don't realize that. And we talk of very high-fi things.

No, somebody told me, and rightly so. I'm not saying wrong, that we should bring in technology. Yes, technology must be brought because this technology is the keyword today. CCTV surveillance can be there. You can have My Gate management on the gate, about the management, My Gate management, a smart gate management system has been introduced. You can have smart patrolling and guard monitoring system everywhere provided for. You can have biometrics and RFID etc. access control systems.

All these are possible. Conditions is the first is the physical presence. If you talk of the physical presence of the housing colony, the first layer, the visible layer, is the private security. Now, the guard as such, you have how they are trained, whether they are trained or not, how they are paid, whether they are paid or not, how they are looked after, whether they are looked after or not. A, B, the role of resident welfare association, how far they're coordinating, how far they're managing, what is the audit conducted by them, what is the frequency of audit, that all right, last time we have put this point, if these have been implemented.

C, what is the role of the local police which is close by? Okay, whether they're acting, whether, even you will surprise to know that most of the people even in the housing colony, garden housing colony, on the gate they do not have a telephone number of the police stations close by. Of course, some of them have, but fear number is not going to matter. Then here the resident, the poor guard, private guard, or even the manager of the guard may not be able to have that liaison. Gradually may have, but initial liaison and breakthrough has to be done by the resident welfare association. Then only you can have a sort of a structured layered approach.

Then comes the technical. The technical, yes, you have got lot of technical thing coming in, and they can add to the security. My submission is that today the most important factor in the society today in the urban areas, particularly, the housing colony. And these housing colonies, if they are governed by neglect, ultimately they mushroom into those private colonies.

See, I have a few observations. You know, what the residents should be able to do, or that this is something that all residents should be educated, is that when you see something unfamiliar, report it. And this habit of reporting is something that has got to be inculcated in everyone. If you see a very unfamiliar vehicle parked in an unusual place for more than a day, inform the RWA, inform the guard, inform the local police. That is what needs to be done.

Number two, if there is a rule, it should be for everybody and not for a few people and not for the bosses. So, if there is a rule, everybody should be subjected to it. The senior residents, the junior residents, everybody should follow it.

Security is a shared responsibility and not a contracted service. Every resident is responsible for the security of the colony, and we cannot just say we have a security agency to guard us, and therefore we are secure. No. Every person is responsible for the security of the RWA in which he or she is staying. And then have the phone numbers handy in case that you want to call the RWA, the security head, or the police station, you must have these numbers ready with you at every time. So, these are some of the points that I thought I'd point out.

And these are very important point, definitely. And one point I'd like to elaborate, you have talked that any observation or movement of suspicion person should be reported. Here, I'll again try to draw the attention of viewers and yours that even if the individual resident is not able to, let us say they do not have the knowledge, that they do not want to involve themselves, which is wrong. They should involve to report such suspicious character.

I am of the view that our private security guard can be of great asset. I've already told you that we can definitely train them, as you rightly said, to look at how are the suspicious person. The question is one should keep his eyes and ears open. This is about people who are staying in the housing society.

And as far as your guards are concerned, sir, with a little knowledge, you can definitely tell them what are the suspicious person, who is not having a normal movement, he looks here and there, what is the abnormal movement, a little bit of briefing to them. They can prove a great asset to the local police. Of course, they cannot take action, but they can prove a great asset to the local police.

I have a few other observations which I'd like to point out here for the benefit of all you listening today. You know, for me as a security professional, the hardest thing to sort of digest is when I know that residents know the rules and they break the rules. For example, letting in a friend without calling the guard at the housing colony gates. So, you know, you let a person in without telling the guard as to who he is. Sharing the gate OTP with a delivery person. Dropping open the building door without knowing as to who you're opening it to.

Every resident who bypasses a protocol is making the colony less safe for every other resident, including children and the elderly, which is most disturbing. I've also noticed that residents often tend not to treat the guard with respect. A guard who is respected can enforce rules. A guard who is not spoken well by the residents becomes passive and disengaged and just marks time.

The most powerful thing any resident can do is firstly to join the RWA's security subcommittee and participate in the security of the area that you stay. In most of the housing societies I've seen, we do not even know who our next-door neighbor is. Who's staying in the floor above us, who's staying in the floor below, or who was even staying on the same floor. We don't know them. People come in and go out as if they're absolute strangers to each other. There is no communal bonding, which I feel that it is the RWA's job to ensure that it happens.

Sir, an incident happened a few months back in Bombay, and I'll refer where a film star was attacked in the house. Now, that triggered off a system everywhere. All housing colonies were alert. Sir, what should be done? Even a film star of that repute can be in Bombay attacked by a person who was sitting at the roof of their house and happened to have infiltrated into the house and then attacked that film star. How is it possible that we can be safe and all?

So, my one answer or one very short observation is the challenges of securing a housing colony are many. And they multiply with the passage of years, you will find they will multiply, and it demands a very, very integrated approach where the living population inside, as well as the people who are given responsibility to guard, as well as the people who are looking after welfare of a housing colony, as well as the management and the police in that area must coordinate, must have a sort of pre-audit and post-audit after posting of some guards, and then also they themselves should understand in this sort of coordination meeting that how useful this can be there, because ultimately you reduce the crime in the society. In the society, I mean in your city, in your country.

If you are able to have a control particularly in these sort of small small pockets, I am very sure that the passage of time will improve the entire safety environment in the country. So, this is not very ordinary thing that we have just today talking. The system of guarding, protecting the housing colony needs to be streamlined, not only by giving them lot of equipment. I am saying again and again, even their physical presence with a little bit of idea as to how to look at a suspicious person, with a little bit idea as to how they should have a patrolling, a little bit idea that this is how the patrolling can be done. All this can greatly improve, if not 100%, greatly improve the protection of the housing colony today.

As we come towards the end of this podcast, if there was one message that you wanted to give to the presidents of the resident welfare associations, what would that be? The one message is that to cry wolf. That is that all of them have. The question is to catch a wolf. So, my question is don't catch, at least cry. Cry for a wolf, that we also don't want to do. There here is somebody suspicious characters.

So, my only request to all the members who are listening to this, at least you should yourself be vigilant at your end. As you said, the society is lacking coherence itself, not only at large, but even in the housing cluster. You don't know the next neighbor who is staying next to you. You are never coordinated with him. You never have any sort of friendly chat with him. With the result that you don't know who is going to be there.

So, my submission is that see if there is a suspicious character and try to have a voice in that. Shout at the frivolous voices in your societies. All right, sir, this should be done that. So, let the society then gear up and talk to the management and improve the security of these housing colonies.

I have a couple of points which I'd like to give to the president of the RWAs. Firstly, is know what is happening in your colony every week and not just after an incident. Number two, I would expect the RWA president to be visible, engaged, and informed. As he is the person who can deter crime in his colony. And security is not a committee resolution. It's a daily happening. And security is everybody's business and not just of the contracted people that you have.

I had added one line that we should have a dedicated sort of security subcommittee. Such a dedicated security subcommittee within our housing colony, and we should have some three to five members who get fully involved as far as the system is concerned, as far as streamlining the system is concerned, as far as the conduct of formal security procedures are concerned, formal security audits are concerned, and how to give a little training and also better living condition to the security. And this particular subcommittee should only be dedicated and accountability mechanism should be fixed by them. Unless, you have a vague thing, will never work. You have to have a subcommittee and accounting mechanism must be fixed for any housing colony.

And on that note, we come to the end of today's discussion. And I hope for all of you who watched and listened, this is really just the beginning of a conversation that you will take back to your own buildings, your own gates, and your own RWA meetings.

What strikes me most of today's exchanges is the security of a housing colony is not a technical problem. It is a leadership problem. The technology exists, the trained guard exists, the processes exist, but what is missing is the will, the will of the RWAs to enforce a protocol probably. The will of residents to comply with rules even when it is inconvenient, and the will of a community to stay together and alert and stay engaged.

Mr. C. Paul Singh has brought out in this conversation the wisdom of a lifetime of law enforcement. The understanding that the human element, the relationship between communities and its security ecosystem, is what ultimately determines whether the colony is safe or vulnerable.

My appeal to every person watching this today is this, share the podcast with your RWAs. Share it with your neighbors. Put one practical idea from today's conversation on your next RWA meeting agenda. That is how change will happen, and that is how you will all get secure.

On behalf of NISSMAT, I thank you all for listening in, and I thank Mr. C. Paul, our distinguished speaker, for sharing his wisdom with you all today. Do like, share, and subscribe to NISSMAT because a safer India begins at home. Thank you and stay home, stay safe.