Reactions to police commissioner Gulabrao Pol’s latest directive towards private security agencies have been conflicting. On the one hand the police establishment believes making retainer licences mandatory for guards bearing firearms will rein in misuse of guns, while some security firms and commercial establishments hiring their services see this as harassment and believe this will create more problems than provide solutions.

So far, many of these guards got by with licences they had obtained for personal usage of the weapons, but that won’t suffice any more. A few security firms have said that the decision will lead to them losing out on business, as the task of acquiring a retainer licence is cumbersome. Several establishments like colleges, banks, factories etc, which rely on the services of these agencies, have said this makes their situation vulnerable, at least in the short term.