Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde will Thursday inaugurate an annual conference of directors general of police (DGPs) that will discuss issues like cyber security, intelligence gathering and communal violence.

 

 The meeting will also discuss ways to prevent misuse of social media and make police more sensitive to the minority community. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will address the conference Friday, release a commemorative stamp and give away the President's Police Medals.

 

 The Conference of Directors General of Police, Inspectors General of Police of States, Union Territories and heads of the central police organisations (CPOs) is held annually. "The conference would discuss strategies for making police forces more sensitive towards minority sections," said a home ministry release.

 

 It said a complete session will be devoted to controlling riots by using non-lethal means in which police chiefs from various states would share their experiences of dealing with agitations with minimum casualties.

 

 "The conference would emphasise the need for developing early warning systems to prevent communal conflagrations and evolve a suitable response strategy," the release said.

 

 A session has also been earmarked to sensitise police on its role as key responder in disaster management. The conference will discuss ways to make policing resourceful, effective, professional and service-oriented.

 

 It will also deliberate on making police stations "nerve centre of all activities pertaining to anti-naxal operations in terms of gathering of hard intelligence, planning field operations, identification of gap areas in implementation of developmental schemes and coordination among various government departments".

 

 The release said social media was intimately linked with freedom of expression and has become a preferred means of communication for millions of people. "The conference would deliberate on the ways to ensure that the medium is not put to invidious use and on mechanisms to counter it," the release said.

 

 The conference will also discuss ways to improve generation of intelligence and its quick dissemination through multi-agency centres (MAC) and subsidiary multi-agency centres (SMAC).

 

 Apart from discussing major security concerns, the conference will deliberate on ways to consolidate the peace processes in the northeastern states.