COLOMBO, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- The Sri Lankan government has authorized the police to recruit another 10,000 policemen, a spokesman for the police said on Saturday.
Senior Superintendent of Police K.B. Manathunga said the new recruits will strengthen police efforts to prevent road accidents and carry out anti-crime and anti-drug operations.
He said there are currently about 75,000 policemen, which is not adequate for the police to implement the new government initiatives.
He said that following the National People's Power (NPP) party's ascension to power last November, the police have ramped up road accident prevention, anti-crime and anti-drug operations.
The Sri Lankan police introduced the "E-Traffic" app on Jan. 1, a mobile platform to report traffic violations, criminal activities and environmental damage, he said, adding that about 10,000 people have downloaded the app.
According to Manathunga, in the first 15 days of 2025, there have only been 65 fatal accidents. During the same period in 2023, there were 105 such accidents and 99 in 2024. ■
