The Indian Imperial Police (officially known as the Imperial Police or I.P.) was part of the uniform system of police administration in British Raj, as established by Government of India Act 1858 and Police Act 1861. It was motivated by the danger experienced by the British during the 1857 Revolution.

In 1920, the Imperial Indian police had 310,000 police in their contingent. Its members policed more than 300 million people from the Raj (now India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Burma).

In 1948, a year after India's independence, the Imperial Police Service was replaced by the Indian Police Service, which had been constituted as part of the All-India Services by the Constitution.Maheshwari, S. R. (2001) Indian Administration (Sixth Edition), p. 306. Orient Blackswan. Retrieved 13 August 2013.

History The sanctioned strength of the I.P. officers in British India was 743 in 1924 of whom 77 (10%) were Indians. In 1946, the sanctioned strength was 721 of whom 221 (30%) were Indians.

It comprised two branches, the Superior Police Services, from which the Indian (Imperial) Police would later be formed, and the Subordinate Police Service. Until 1893, appointments to the senior grades (i.e., Assistant District Superintendent and above) were mainly from European officers of the Indian Army."Indian Police Services" British Library. Retrieved 13 August 2013.

The highest rank in the service was the Inspector General for each province. The rank of Inspector General was equated and ranked with Brigadier and similar ranks in the Indian Armed Forces, as per Central Warrant of Precedence in 1937. Subordinate to the Inspector General, the ranks were composed of District Superintendents and Assistant District Superintendents, most of whom were appointed, from 1893, by examination for the Indian Civil Service tests in the UK. The Subordinate Police Service consisted of Inspectors, Sub-Inspectors, Head Constables (or Sergeant in the City forces and cantonments) and Constables, consisting mainly of Indians except for the higher ranks.

By the 1930s, the Indian Police exercised "unprecedented degree of authority within the colonial administration".Arnold, David (1992) "Police Power and the Demise of British Rule in India, 1930 – 47" in David Anderson, David Killingray, Policing and Decolonisation: Politics, Nationalism, and the Police, 1917-65, pp. 42–61. Manchester University Press, 1992 Retrieved 13 August 2013. The Indian Imperial Police was also the primary law enforcement in Burma, governed as a province of India,Crick, Bernard (2004) "Blair, Eric Arthur [George Orwell] (1903–1950)" in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Retrieved 13 August 2013. until 1937.

Before WWII, the Indian Police routinely served as a source of cadre for MI5.

Ranks of the Imperial (India) Police Superior Services: Inspector General of Police (Head of the state police) Deputy Inspector General of Police (Head of Range Police) or Commissioner of Four cities (Madras, Bombay, Calcutta and Rangoon) Superintendent of Police (Head of District Police) Assistant Superintendent of Police (Head of sub divisional Police, specially main sub division of a district) Subordinate services: Deputy Superintendent of Police (Head of sub divisional Police). Inspector of Police (Head of circle Police) Sub Inspector of Police (Head of Police station) Sergeant Head constable Naik Constable

Orwell George Orwell, with his real name Eric Blair, served in the Indian Imperial Police, in Burma, from 27 November 1922 to 12 July 1927,Orwell, George (1998) Complete Works of George Orwell - Volume 10, p. 87, edited by Peter Davison. Secker & Warburg, London. formally resigning while on leave in England (effective 1 January 1928) having attained the rank of Assistant District Superintendent at District Headquarters, first in Insein, and later at Moulmein. He wrote of how having been in contact with, in his own words, "the dirty work of Empire at close quarters" had affected his personal, political and social opinions. Some of his works referring to his experiences include "A Hanging" (1931), set in the notorious Insein Prison, and his novel Burmese Days (1934). Likewise, although he wrote that, "I loved Burma and the Burman and have no regrets that I spent the best years of my life in the Burma police.",Stansky, Peter (1994) The Unknown Orwell: Orwell, the Transformation, pp. 192–201. Stanford University Press. Retrieved 13 August 2013. in "Shooting an Elephant" (1936),Villiers, Peter (2011) Leading from Example: A Short Guide to the Lessons of Literature, p. 98. Triarchy Press Limited Retrieved 13 August 2013. his character stated that "In Moulmein in Lower Burma, I was hated by large numbers of people–- the only time in my life that I have been important enough for this to happen to me."

Notable members Charles Tegart George Orwell Percival Griffiths James Alexander Scott John P. Saunders T. Ramachandra Rao Bhola Nath Mullik Panchanan Ghoshal Qazi Azizul Haque Hem Chandra Bose

References

Notes

Further reading Ireland in an Imperial World: Citizenship, Opportunism, and Subversion (Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan UK; ) Khaki in Dust Storm (Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing; ) Orwell - The Life (Publisher: Random House; )

Bibliography Chandavarkar, Rajnarayan (1998) Imperial Power and Popular Politics: Class, Resistance and the State in India, 1850-1950. Cambridge University Press.