This year's budget again promises to take steps for the decentralisation of police, a pledge Finance Minister AMA Muhith made once before on the same occasion in 2009 but did not take any measures to that end in the last five years.

As in 2009, he also expressed his desire to make police and other law enforcement agencies more people centric and free them from political influence.

zT he minister, however, did not explain how the decentralisation will be carried out. /\sked about this, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Hassan Mahmood Khandker said he could not immediately interpret what kind of decentralisation Muhith referred to.

Talking about the minister's rhetoric, former IGP ASM Shahjahan said, "1 don't see any steps taken apparently towards decentralisation in the last five years."

"Decentralisation would create accountability in police's work and help the force earn people's trust, which it is lacking now," he told The Daily Star. He added, "A strong political will is necessary to decentralise police."