87% of Bengaluru cops obese, overweight, or underweight

Bengaluru: Fitness tests on the Bengaluru city police force have revealed that 87 per cent of them have an unhealthy body mass index (BMI) with 16,296 of its 18,665 personnel either obese, overweight or underweight.

The findings, accessed exclusively by DH, revealed that about 7,550 personnel are obese, 3,746 are overweight and 5,000 are underweight.

A mere 2,369 policemen, which is 13 per cent of the total workforce, are of normal weight and fall under the category of “physically fit”. 

City police commissioner B Dayananda attributed the situation to erratic working hours, flawed eating patterns, extreme stress and poor lifestyle.

A senior police officer told DH that about 15 to 20 per cent of vacancies in the law and order department alone have not been filled for a long time. Though recruitment is an ongoing process, attrition rate is quite high due to the tough nature of the job.

So, being understaffed means more work for the existing officers, which puts them under more stress, leading to obesity.

Dayananda stressed that the police department works under immense pressure. The policemen often sacrifice personal lives, leading to psychological issues that eventually lead to physiological problems. 

“Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and addictions are other major concerns. These are also contributing factors to obesity,” Dayananda said.

To understand the reasons for such a high obesity percentage, DH spoke to well-being officers appointed by the police department.

Personnel deployed on bandobast duty often work round the clock and eat food provided by organisers.

Sometimes, the food is not good, and very often served at odd hours. Additionally, as they are not aware of when they will get their next meal, they overeat. 

For an 8 am bandobast duty, personnel report at 5 am. They don’t have prescribed timings, and often sacrifice sleep.

During murder, suicide and other such investigations, their mental health takes a hit.

As many officers are old, there is a taboo on getting counselling for mental health issues, which leads to further problems.

Police work completely changes one’s lifestyle; for this, they need to exercise to keep themselves fit. But this seldom happens due to erratic work schedules. 

As the job gets harder and more stressful, some personnel take to drinking, smoking and stress eating. All these contribute to obesity, according to the well-being officers.

Why being fit is key

Raman Gupta, additional commissioner, Administration, told DH that two major reasons why police personnel must be fit are ‘public image’ and to tackle hard jobs. He stressed that the police department is deploying a few measures to keep its force fit.

In May 2023, the Assam police passed an order stating that obese police officers needed to get fit in six months or they would be asked to take voluntary retirement. 

When asked if such a strict measure would be taken, Dayananda said, “Most of the time, obesity is an occupational hazard. Hence, such a step is not fair. We have other ways to keep the department fit, and punishment is not always the best option. We will provide them guidance, reinforce them in different ways, and see how it works out; certain measures are already being deployed to tackle this.”

Corrective measures

The department’s well-being officers have been tasked by the top cop to work on corrective measures on poor lifestyle, help them strike work-life balance & better personal life management, prevent alcoholism & conduct one-on-one counseling.

To keep that going, well-being officers have been asked to submit reports every week. 

One-on-one counseling has been made mandatory for cops to deal with mental health issues. 

Now, the police are mandated to take their weekly leave. Earlier, the department used to pay an officer if they worked on their weekly leave. In case they work on their off day, they must take it the following day.

How is BMI calculated?

1) The Bengaluru police used a BMI scale developed by a private institute which is a standard scale used by the Karnataka State Police.

2) Age, body weight, and height are calculated and processed using the scale to obtain an obesity score.

3) This test has been conducted from police constable rank to Indian Police Service (IPS) rank officers, serving in the Bengaluru city police.