KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 30 — Anyone who aspires to join the police is aware of the risks and dangers of the job, but being ambushed by communists terrorists on the first day of duty, narrowly escaping death multiple times and having a bullet pass through the thigh are among the experiences endured by police veteran, S.K. Puvaneswaran.
Now at 90, the former superintendent is having difficulties hearing and moving, but his memories are still sharp after serving the force for 33 years before retiring in 1983.
The nonagenarian shared his love for the force and sacrifice of sweat and blood for the country, including from confronting communist terrorists to gangsters as well as patrolling coastal areas while posted in the Marine branch.
Born on July 21, 1931, at the Kuala Lumpur General Hospital, Puvaneswaran said his interest to be a police officer started from a young age, so he joined the force in June 1950, aged 19, and was among the first batch of Asian inspectors in the country during the British colonial era.
On the very first day of his appointment on Dec 10, 1950, when he was on the way to join duty as Assistant Officer-in-Charge in the small town of Renggam in Johor, his train was ambushed by the communists.
Renggam, now a quiet town in the Kluang districts with its residents having moved to larger urban areas, used to be of British interest, having large plantations that remain until now, and even Queen Elizabeth II had visited it in the 1950s.
Puvaneswaran shared that was not the last communist attack he faced, he continued to face the threat from the terrorists as the Renggam Police Station had been attacked besides several other bloody battles.
“During that time, I also disguised myself as a rubber tapper between Renggam-Kluang to collect information on Indian communist terrorists. Then, I managed to arrest a person with an Armalite gun with ammunition at Layang-Layang police station,” he told Bernama when met at Wisma Bernama.
After a short stint at the Johor Bahru Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Puvaneswaran was later tasked as a platoon commander to hunt for communists terrorists in the jungles of Kota Tinggi and Mersing in Johor, as well as Tanah Merah, Gua Musang and border areas in Kelantan, before serving as chief in Marine Police Patrol.
“I captured intruders, pirates and provided safety for fishermen. During that time, the confrontation by Indonesia (1963-1966) made me work day and night, and captured saboteurs with arms off Pontian,” he added.
After mostly dealing with communists and pirates for about 17 years, he was later tasked to confront gangsters when appointed for CID duties in Ipoh, Perak where he detained 50 gangsters.
One day while in a gunfight, he was shot in the right thigh by a gangster, and the bullet passed through. Even though in deadly pain, he still managed to swiftly shoot the attacker’s hand to help other officers to capture.
He later served as Dungun district police chief (OCPD), and was followed by stints in Bukit Aman Marine division, Kuala Lumpur CID and was Sabah Marine division chief, before serving as a prosecutor at the Jalan Duta courts prior to retirement.
During his time in the force, Puvaneswaran, who is known as Puvan, said he was active with the Johor, Selangor and Perak polo teams, where he came in close contact with several royal families.
He even related his experiences in two books – Memoirs of Early Life & 33 Years in the Police Force published in 2004 and Recollections & Reminiscences of Past Police Service in 2018.
He added that he had been honoured with the Kesatria Mangku Negara (KMN) and Ahli Mangku Negara (AMN) awards for his services and hoped to be given a Datukship as well.
Source: BERNAMA News Agency