The Tamil Nadu Police, established in 1859, has completed 150 years of dedicated service. It has jurisdiction over an area of 1,30,058 sq. kms with a coastline of 1076 kms and a population of approximately 62 million. The Force is headed by a Director General, assisted by ADGPs and IGPs and other officers at various levels. Four other officers of DGP rank independently look after Tamil Nadu Police Housing Corporation, Fire Services, Tamil Nadu Uniformed Services, Recruitment Board and Training. The Tamil Nadu Police has 236 IPS cadre officers and an executive strength of 1,03,098 officers and men and 5309 ministerial staff.

The Police organizational set up in the State comprises 7 Commisionerates (Chennai, Chennai Sub-Urban, Madurai, Coimbatore, Tiruchirapalli, Salem and Tirunelveli) each headed by a Commissioner of Police, four Zones (North, Central, West and South) each under an Inspector General of Police, with Superintendents of Police heading 12 Police Ranges including Railway Police Range and 32 Police Districts. Each City and District also has an Armed Reserve of Police personnel besides the local police force. There are 1452 Police Stations including 196 Women's Police Stations. With 10130 women, the Tamil Nadu Police has the largest number of Women Police in the country who are integrated into the mainstream.

There are separate wings and units to handle the multifarious functions like recruitment, training and other important divisions of work viz. Law and Order, Crime, Traffic, Police Housing Corporation, special units like Crime Branch, Security Branch, Special Branch, Intelligence, Civil Supplies, Economic Offenders Wing, Social Justice Wing, Coastal Security Group, Special Task Force, Prohibition Enforcement Wing, State Traffic Planning Cell and Home Guards etc.

The Tamil Nadu Police has won several distinctions and honours and established several milestones since the first Inspector General was appointed in Madras in 1859. The world's first Fingerprint Bureau was created in Madras in 1895, which detects almost 60% of crime cases in India. The Tamil Nadu Police were the first to establish a dedicated Microwave Network across the State in 1979. Introducing wireless radio (Malabar Police, 1923), police dog squads (1951), Fax, pioneering the computerization of crime records (1971), introducing Women Commando Force (2001) and the first Women Battalion in the country (2004) as part of the Special Police are just some of its milestones.

The State police continues to progress keeping in step with the socio-economic environment, enhancing its ability to meet the new emerging threats of terrorism by effective intelligence collection and through use of modern technology. It also continues to focus on the basic duties of maintenance of law and order, prevention and detection of crime and to reach out and fulfill the needs of the common man.

The Department of Posts is happy to issue a commemorative postage stamp on the Tamil Nadu Police.

Source : Information Folder issued by Indian Posts & Telegraph Department, Government of India