After being severely criticised for advising Indian students to look poor to avoid attacks, Victorian Police Commissioner Simon Overland has now appealed to the community members to join his force in a bid to develop greater trust and understanding with them
After being severely criticised for advising Indian students to look "poor" to avoid attacks, Victorian Police Commissioner Simon Overland has now appealed to the community members to join his force in a bid to develop "greater trust and understanding" with them.
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| Tough cop: Dinesh Nettur, of Indian descent, had joined Victoria Police in 1997 |
Overland joined four police officers of Indian background in addressing members of the Indian media about Victoria Police's desire to attract a more diverse range of police recruits.
"The Victorian community is the most ethnically diverse in Australia. It is important that our police reflect this and that we attract officers from a diverse range of cultural backgrounds, including the Indian community," said Overland.
Against the backdrop of a series of attacks on Indian students in Australia, there has been a strong demand to include more Indian faces in the local police force.
Of the 11,904 police officers working for Victoria Police in January, 730 or just 6.1 per cent were born overseas, including 34 officers born in the Indian sub-continent. Dinesh Nettur of Indian descent, who had joined Victoria Police in 1997, said, "I definitely encourage people of all backgrounds to join Victoria Police as we really need people from different cultures and who can speak different languages."
According to Senior Constable Ash Dixit, who came to Australia 11 years ago as a business student, it was a dream come true when he joined the force.
34, number of people of Indian origin among 11,904 police officers in Victoria
