Kiran Bedi

Date of Birth - 9 June 1949

Birth Place – Amritsar, Punjab

Education – Schooling from Sacred Heart Convent School, Amritsar, B.A. in English (H) from the Government College for Women, Amritsar, Master’s in Political Science from Punjab University, Chandigarh, LLB from Delhi University and Ph.D. from Social Sciences from the Department of Social Sciences, IIT New Delhi.  

Career – A retired IPS officer. Currently, working as a social activist. 

 

Kiran Bedi continues to be a very popular name associated with the Indian Police Service (IPS) even though she has now retired. This gutsy woman made headlines when she became India’s first woman to join the IPS in 1972. An inspiration for the coming generations (especially girls) in India, Kiran Bedi went on to be appointed for some very important posts in her career which she handled diligently and with full loyalty. She has also penned an autobiography, headed the Tihar Jail and operates a couple of NGOs. At present, she is a busy social activist working relentlessly for the welfare of the deprived people.  

 

Kiran Bedi was born on 9 June 1949 to couple, Prakash Lal Peshawaria and Prem Lata Peshawaria at Amritsar in the Punjab state of India. She is the second of their four daughters. Kiran Bedi did her schooling from the Sacred Heart Convent School at Amritsar, where she joined the National Cadet Corps (NCC) and took up tennis. From 1964 to 68, she did B.A. in English (H) from the Government College for Women, Amritsar. Thereafter from 1968 to 1970, Bedi did a Master’s in Political Science from Punjab University, Chandigarh and topped in the University.

 

The educational quest of Kiran Bedi went on even when she was busy working in the Indian Police acquiring a Law degree (LLB) from Delhi University in 1988. In the year 1993, Kiran did her Ph.D. from Social Sciences from the Department of Social Sciences, the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi. The topic for her thesis here was 'Drug Abuse and Domestic Violence'. Kiran Bedi’s career started as a Political Science lecturer at the Khalsa College of Amritsar from 1970 to 1972. It was in the July of 1972 that she was selected an IPS officer.

 

Kiran Bedi holds the distinction of efficiently serving an array of challenging assignments like Traffic Commissioner of New Delhi, Deputy Inspector General of Police in insurgency prone Mizoram, Advisor to the Lieutenant Governor of Chandigarh, etc. Bedi was also given a United Nations post, where she was the Civilian Police Advisor in the United Nations peacekeeping department. For this UN job, she was honored with the UN medal. People call her ‘Crane Bedi’ also because she ordered the towing away of Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi’s car as it had violated parking rules.

 

Kiran Bedi is credited for moulding various decisions of the IPS like narcotics control, traffic management and VIP security. She has introduced many reforms in prison management while serving as the Inspector General of Prisons, Tihar Jail, Delhi from 1993 to 1995.  She brought in measures like detoxification programs, yoga, meditation, prisoners’ grievance redressal as well as literacy programs. She was given the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1994 for her pioneering effort, along with being awarded the 'Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowship' that required her to write about the work executed at Tihar Jail.

 

After all these stints, Kiran Bedi was finally appointed the Director General of India's Bureau of Police Research and Development. Her career merits, however, do not end just here. In the month of May in 2005, Bedi was bestowed an honorary degree of Doctor of Law in recognition of her “humanitarian approach to prison reforms and policing”. On 27 November 2007, Kiran Bedi voiced her desire to take Voluntary Retirement from job to take up fresh challenges. This decision of hers’ came after she was superceded by YS Dadwal for the post of Delhi Police Commissioner in July 2007. On 25 December 2007, she was relieved from her duty by the Indian government.

 

Kiran Bedi operates a website http://www.saferindia.com, where a person can log a complaint against any crime if the police of that particular area have denied accepting the same. The NGO managing this website then forwards the same complaint to the DGP of the concerned area for it to be taken up. Then in 1998, Kiran Bedi came out with her autobiography 'I Dare. It's Always Possible'. Her two NGOs are Navajyoti set up in 1987 and India Vision Foundation (set up in 1994). Kiran Bedi married Brij Bedi in 1972 and has got a daughter, Saina. 

 

1949 – Kiran Bedi was born on 9 June 1949 at Amritsar in Punjab, India.

1964 - She did B.A. in English (H) from the Government College for Women, Amritsar from 1964 to 1968.

1968 - Bedi did a Master’s in Political Science from Punjab University, Chandigarh from 1968 to 1970.

1970 –Political Science lecturer at Khalsa College of Amritsar from 1970 to 1972.

1972 – In July, Kiran Bedi was elected an IPS officer.

1972 - Kiran Bedi married Brij Bedi.

1987 – NGO, Navajyoti was set up.

1988 – Kiran Bedi did got her Law degree (LLB) from Delhi University

1993 - Ph.D. in Social Sciences from Department of Social Sciences, IIT New Delhi.

1993 – Inspector General of Prisons, Tihar Jail, Delhi from 1993 to 1995.

1994 – Got Ramon Magsaysay Award for introducing pioneering reforms in Tihar.

1994 – NGO, India Vision Foundation was set up.

1998 - Kiran Bedi came out with her autobiography 'I Dare. It's Always Possible'.

2005 – Kiran Bedi was given an honorary degree of Doctor of Law in recognition of her “humanitarian approach to prison reforms and policing.

2007 - Kiran Bedi voiced her desire to take Voluntary Retirement from her IPS job on 27 November, 2007.
2007 – She was relieved from her duty by the Indian government on 25 December, 2007.