Courtesy : KCA Mumbai
Mumbai is generally a peaceful city, barring an occasional flare-up. There was a time when organised crime and ISI activities had peaked in the metropolis. At a critical juncture like this there emerged a man of stature in the person of Mr. Ronnie Mendonca, to serve as Mumbai’s Police Commissioner. He effectively led 40,000 Officers and men of Mumbai Police Commissionerate and brought the situation under control. He graced the Office of the Police Commissioner Mumbai in the rank of Director General of Police from August 21, 1997 to May 5, 2000 never allowing any scandal to taint it.
The Catholic community had relatively quite a number of luminaries in the Civil Services of the Government of India or the States. Sadly today, our youth are not attracted to the Services. Mr. Mendonca, a Mangalorean, excelled in the Indian Police Service.
Ronnie, son of William and Magdalene, was born on September 11, 1941 in Kundapur. He had six siblings, four brothers and two sisters. His entire family today are of sweet memory. He was raised in Kallianpur and attended Milagres High School. He graduated in Zoology with distinction from Bombay University, and was recipient of Shantaram Dabholkar prize. After his Masters in Marine Zoology, he joined the Indian Police Service.
His service highlights are impressive. In Maharashtra, he headed the Police Force in five districts as Superintendent of Police and as Commissioner of Police – in Nagpur, Thane, and Mumbai respectively. He headed the Mumbai City Crime Branch, and served in the Cabinet Secretariat, Government of India, as Director and also as Joint Secretary (1987-1995). He also headed the Maharashtra State C.I.D Crime Department. During his last posting as Director Anti-Corruption Bureau Maharashtra State (2000-2001), many traps were conducted successfully and several senior government officers including one Additional Commissioner of Police were booked. It is recorded that his outstanding commitment, courage, hard work and loyalty made him successful. This is an inspiration to our young generation.
Mr. Mendonca’s family consists of his wife Clotilda Rita, born and brought up in Dharwar. She is a retired lecturer in Sociology. The couple have two children, a daughter Rashmi married to Arthur da Gama, and a son Vinay, married to Suzanne Menezes. Both children are bankers in London. Ronnie and Rita are blessed with three grandchildren Neil, Ronit and Rahul.
After retirement, Mr. Mendonca worked on several Committees. He was member of the Civil Service Reforms Committee, Government of India; and served as a member of the Maharashtra State Security Committee. He is a Trustee of the Mumbai Mohalla Committees and Maharashtra Governor’s nominee in the Managing Committee of the King George V Memorial Infirmary.
He is a linguist knowing Hindi, English, Marathi, Kannada, Konkani and the dialect Tulu. He prides in his mother tongue and participates at all Konkani functions. Addressing a gathering of around 3,000 people at Shanmukananda Hall, Matunga, on October 23, he appealed to the Bhasha Mandal to work towards having one script for the language. He relaxes playing the harmonica, gardening and trekking.
When asked what made him join the Police Force, he said that he was fascinated by the uniform as a boy scout and as a NCC Cadet. He had a romance with uniformed services which drew him into the Indian Police Service. He appeared at the UPSC exam for the IPS and simultaneously completed his M.SC. He remarked, “I could not have made a better choice. The Indian Police Service is a daunting and challenging one, but it provided me a good career and gave me an opportunity to help people in distress, serve the community and the nation with the authority of law invested in me”.
Ronnie Mendonca has received many accolades. He is Recipient of the President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service, and commended for bravery by the Government of India. In 2000, he received the outstanding Konkani Award presented by Dr. T.M.A Foundation, Manipal.
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