TVSN Prasad Committee on use of Pellet Guns

Term of Reference 

• A seven-member Expert Committee under the chairmanship of Shri T V S N Prasad, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs was constituted for exploring the other possible alternatives to Pellet Guns as Non-lethal Weapons. 

Background 

• The recommendation comes after global criticism over the use of pellet guns against the Kashmiri protesters that have killed at least three and maimed or blinded thousands of civilians.

Recommendations

• The pellet guns should be used in rarest of rare cases.
  
•  It recommended for use of Pelargonic Acid Vanillyl Amide (PAVA), containing an irritant chemical found in natural chilli and other nonlethal ammunition like ‘stun lac cells’ to be used against protesters in Kashmir.
  
•  It suggests for use of other non-lethal weapons, like chilli grenade shells, for crowd control.
  
•  It calls for use of Long Range Acoustic Device (LARD), which create deafening noise to paralyse people, in rural areas as it could prove dangerous for old buildings in downtown Srinagar.
  
•  It suggests that tear gas shells should be made of plastic so that it may melt on being fired and cannot be picked up by the protests to throw them back at forces.
  
•  It also suggests for change of the gas in tear gas shell to make it more effective.