S.M. Edwardes |
Mumbai: What image comes to mind when we think of a police constable? The answer may vary today, but over a century ago, a single man worked tirelessly to change the perception of police constables and improve their lives. That man was S.M. Edwardes, the Police Commissioner of Bombay from 1909 to 1916. Edwardes, a reformer with a vision, introduced numerous initiatives that left a lasting impact on the Mumbai Police.
During Edwardes’s tenure, he recognised the challenges constables faced in communicating with English-speaking citizens and improving their prospects for career advancement. In July 1911, he initiated a program to teach constables English and regional languages, such as Marathi and Gujarati.
Selected Hindu and Muslim constables attended two free night schools, and the program quickly gained popularity. Encouraged by this success, Edwardes established an English school at the police headquarters, where 150 constables were tutored for three years.
Classes included lectures on topics ranging from public welfare to personal hygiene, with a particular focus on developing clear and elegant handwriting. Constables practised copying passages until they mastered a cursive style that looked like that of modern convent school students.
Among the notable participants was Constable Muhammed Shakur Habibullah, whose exemplary handwriting became a symbol of the program’s success.
To further support constables’ families, a fund named the S.M.E. Fund was established by Hindu and Muslim residents under the leadership of Kazi Kabiruddin, a prominent barrister and Justice of the Peace.
This fund aimed to finance the education of constables’ children, reflecting Edwardes’s broader concern for the welfare of his force.
Edwardes’s compassion extended to the families of constables who died in the line of duty. His legacy improved the quality of the constabulary by the founding of the Boys Brigade in 1917, an institution that continues to this day.
The Boys Brigade served multiple purposes like employment for orphans. Sons of deceased constables were provided with jobs in the brigade. It created a pool of trained candidates ready to join the police force upon reaching adulthood.
Boys in the brigade wore uniforms resembling the police force’s attire at the time, bright blue jackets, shorts, and caps.
Today, their uniforms match the khaki worn by the police, minus the numbered belt. The brigade members received a stipend and retained the residential quarters allocated to their parents. Upon turning 18, they could sit for an exam to officially join the police force as constables.
S.M. Edwardes’s tenure as Commissioner of Police was marked by compassion, innovation, and reform. By focusing on education, welfare, and modernisation, he uplifted the lives of constables and their families, leaving a legacy that continues to shape the Mumbai Police.
Deepak Rao, historian of the Mumbai Police, has collected extensive information and published it in the Mumbai Police coffee table book, where these details can be found.
Rao stated, “Edwardes was an officer with a vision. He made a huge contribution to the Mumbai Police. While he was in England on holiday he was appointed Police Commissioner of Bombay and sent to Scotland Yard headquarters of London police where he studied the pattern of policing of London which he implemented in Mumbai on his return.”
Rao added, “Edwardes also served as the Municipal Commissioner of Bombay for six months in 1916, after completing his tenure as Police Commissioner of Bombay. He authored 24 books on Indian topics.”
