T.Ramamoorthy, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Special Intelligence Cell, Coimbatore City Police, is a determined policeman who was honored by Late Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu J. Jayalalitha with The Chief Minister’s Medal, which also carried Rs 1.00,000/- as prize money for his “Outstanding Devotion to Duty” for the year 2013. He also won the President’s Police Medal for “Meritorious Service’ for the year 2016. He was born in a middle class family at Sathuvachari town in Vellore district. “I was a natural sportsman right from my school days. And it was this that motivated me to do weight lifting also which helped me pass the police fitness training with ease’’, says the ACP.
“I was the only one in my family to choose police service for my career. Walter Devaram, former Director General of Police (DGP), Tamil Nadu was my role model. I remember still an awful event that took place in 1984 in Katpadi, Vellore. When policemen had arrested some naxals and were about to transport them in custody, there was a sudden bomb blast that killed them all, both the naxals and the policemen. Walter Devaram, one of the most efficient officers of Tamil Nadu, was the Deputy Inspector General (DIG), of Vellore district at that time and he curbed the Naxal menace with an iron hand during his stint as DIG, Vellore Range”, lauded T. Ramamoorthy, ACP.
He said, “It was because of the very tough measures taken by Walter Devaram that the naxal groups have been unable to establish themselves in Tamil Nadu till date. As a student at that time I was witness to all these and I resolved that it was police the force that I must enter into. Apart from working hard to improve my physical fitness, I also read a lot to widen my general knowledge.”
“In 1987, I competed for the selection of the Sub-Inspector of Police in Chennai. Walter Devaram was the commissioner of Chennai city and he was also one of the members of the Selection Committee. I scored good marks in the written examination and my physical fitness was an added advantage and I got selected without any problem. Getting recruited by my childhood hero was a dream come true for me. It will always be one of the most cherished moments of my life”.
He remembered his posting at Coimbatore stating, “I joined as the Sub-Inspector of Police in Coimbatore Urban District in 1988, which was later named Coimbatore City Police in 1990. It’s been 27 years and I’ve worked in various police stations in the district involving all the vulnerable and sensible areas”.
“The first communal case of the district was filed in 1989 and it was the most significant one too. Since then, there have been so many communal cases reported in Coimbatore and its surroundings. We have been actively working on the communal cases and have been recognized as one of the best Investigation Departments in solving the communal cases.”
“We have given valuable inputs and information in resolving various cases across Tamil Nadu like the detection of petrol bombs seizure case in Coimbatore city, BJP office bomb blast case in Bangalore city, Vellore Doctor’s murder case and the Salem Auditor’s murder case. We also helped the investigators in finding the accused of 2013 Bangalore Bomb Blast. My devotion to service in the police department was applauded over the years by both the central and state government and I owe a great deal to his superiors as well as his subordinates who have been supporting him all these years,” recalls the officer with pride.
Photo: Balaji Remy