Bengaluru Police Commissionerate to be split into five, Karnataka Cabinet approves

Karnataka Cabinet on October 6 approved the reorganisation of Bengaluru City Police Commissionerate into five separate commissionerates. The existing Bengaluru City Police Commissionerate will be divided into East, West, North, South and Central commissionerates under the overall supervision of a Chief Commissioner of Police. The move is aimed at improving law and order, crime control, traffic management and public safety in the rapidly expanding city, Home, IT-BT and e-Governance Minister Priyank Kharge said. 1,022 new posts approved As part of the restructuring, the existing post of Police Commissioner will be upgraded to Chief Commissioner of Police. Joint/Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) will be redesignated as Police Commissioner (Traffic). Also, read: Karnataka to split Bengaluru Police Commissionerate into five, says DK Shivakumar Finance Department has approved the creation of 1,022 new posts required for the reorganisation. A total of 6,550 posts will be required to handle criminal cases, traffic control and public security across the proposed units, including existing posts that will be redesignated. Traffic divisions to be strengthened The government will create six new Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) posts to strengthen traffic and law-and-order management. Two will be for the Central Traffic Division, one each for Western and Northern Traffic Divisions, and two for Western Law and Order Division. Five new executive posts will be created for each ACP office. The government will also redeploy personnel from existing City Armed Reserve (CAR) units and establish a new CAR unit for the Eastern Division. 11 new police stations to get staff The Cabinet has also approved 276 new staff for 11 police stations, including stations on the city's outskirts. The establishment of these police stations and deployment of personnel will be taken up in phases after the ongoing recruitment processes are completed. Kharge said the restructuring was necessitated by Bengaluru's growing population, estimated at around 1.56 crore, and the city's expanding geographical spread. "Providing quick response and efficient police administration to citizens is a top priority," Kharge said, adding that the restructuring would strengthen law and order and traffic management in Bengaluru. In September 2025, Bengaluru's civic body, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), which was formed in 2007, was replaced by the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA). The city was subsequently divided into five corporations-Central, North, South, East and West-under the overarching GBA. Other Cabinet decisions Karnataka Cabinet has approved a Rs 704 crore project to strengthen digitisation and digital infrastructure in the state's judiciary, Kharge said. The project includes setting up a data centre and disaster recovery centre for the judiciary through the Karnataka State Data Centre. The e-Governance Division of Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms will be the nodal agency. The Cabinet has approved Rs 10.35 crore to provide emergency responder kits to 10,350 volunteers trained under the centrally sponsored Yuva Aapda Mitra Scheme (YAMS), Kharge said. The scheme covers 11 districts, including Bengaluru, Dakshina Kannada, Kodagu, Udupi and Uttara Kannada. Each volunteer will receive a protective equipment kit worth Rs 10,000. The Fire and Emergency Services Department will procure the kits through tender. The Cabinet has decided to withdraw the Criminal Law Amendment Bill, 2022, as its provisions are already covered under the new central criminal law, Kharge said.