Advance Police comm network's backbone comes from Bengaluru

BENGALURU: The ministry of home affairs (MHA), on January 20, launched POLNET 2.0, the advanced multimedia communication network for police and security forces. And, the infrastructure for this new and enhanced communication platform has been set up by a city-based MSME.


The Directorate of Coordination Police Wireless (DCPW) under the MHA, which operates the Polnet or the police network services in the country says the new network will better communication during law and order problems and disasters.

This Network provides secure voice communication, messaging, data and multi-party video conferencing among police forces of states, UTs and the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) all over India.

Anand Swaroop, director, Directorate of Coordination Police Wireless (DCPW) that operates POLNET, while arguing the new network will not only be secure but also be something that is more reliable, told STOI: “This network will be on the C-band, meant for tactical operations, unlike the S-band used for mobile networks. Using this frequency (36 MHz) with a dedicated transponder means that the communication doesn’t get distubed even when there is a weather disturbance, for instance in case of cyclone.”

The earlier version of POLNET used the Ku-band and not the C-band satellite network. Swaroop said that the infrastructure for the new network was set up by a Bengaluru-based MSME, ADTL (Alpha Design Technologies Pvt Ltd).

So far, as part of the project, ADTL has set up more than 100 VSAT’s (very small satellite terminals) at remote locations including Andaman & Nicobar, Lakshadweep , Jammu & Kashmir and the North East states.

Successful testing for linking crime record bureaus’ 260-odd Technically Non-Feasible (TNF) sites for enabling on-line filing of FIRs, general diary, criminal search data from such remote sites have been completed.

And, quick deployable (in less than 15mins) flyaway terminals have been provided by ADTL for disaster response.“By extending the network at remote locations to public switched telephone networks (PSTNs) and general mobile phone, police personnel posted on long durations away from home are enabled to speak to their families, giving them emotional relief,” Col (read) HS Shankar, CMD, ADTL, told STOI.

Both Swaroop and Shankar said that the system will be expanded from the existing 105 sites to 1,700, in various state police headquarters and district level police stations and eventually to 3,000 locations making reach of POLNET at Pan-India locations.

“ADTL will manage the network for next three years and subsequently through Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC) to cover a total of 10years. Our contract provides for the state police and other CAPF to order directly their requirements without going through time-consuming tendering process,” Shankar said.