If you possess the virtue of compassion for others and try relentlessly to mitigate the sufferings of people in your surrounding with purity of purpose, rest assured the world will discover you and reach your doorstep with honours and recognition, even if you live at a non-descript place. If you still have any doubt, meet a young girl, an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, from Nagaland. She is Pritpal Kaur, the only Indian to be selected for the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) award for 2024. She is among the 40 police officers below the age of 40 selected from across the globe for this honour. She has been invited to Boston, Massachusetts, in the US to receive the award on October 22.
A 2016 batch IPS officer, Pritpal is currently serving as the Superintendent of Police of the Nagaland’s Phek district. She exhibits an irresistible urge to ameliorate the condition of people struggling in life and dons different roles for different sets of people at different times. Originally a dentist, she forgets that she is the boss of the district police and starts treating common people suffering from dental ailments. She becomes the guardian of the school drop outs and begins counselling them about the value of education in life and swings to become a guide in no time coaching young students preparing for the competitive examinations including the Civil Services Examination. Next time, she may be spotted hurdling with poor women and teaching them the importance of hygiene for female issues.
Her intrinsic caring nature has earned her the sobriquet of being a grandmother for the community, a Themshao Lam in Naga parlance, meaning a grandmother who sacrificed a lot for the welfare of the community in the olden days. This young police officer has earned several awards for her exemplifying leadership but she enjoys being referred to as a grandmother and treats this honour as one of her greatest achievements.
