Holidays of Russia - Day of Creation of Voluntary People's Teams

In the USSR, public people's squads were created to help law enforcement agencies They not only patrolled the streets of cities and towns, but since 1960 they even helped the border troops in protecting the state border Activists in the citizen groups were recruited from employees of enterprises, collective farms, housing offices and other house management bodies, and residents of rural settlements March 2, 1955 is known in history as the Day of the Creation of Voluntary People's Teams Civilians were involved in maintaining order at mass celebrations back in Tsarist Russia under Alexander III For his coronation in 1881, a voluntary national guard was created The young state of workers and peasants received its first such experience in 1926 Then, in some institutions and industrial enterprises of Leningrad, public order commissions (POC) were formed to help the police, which fought against hooligans and drunkards In 1927, the COP consisted of more than 2,300 activists from the city on the Neva In the same year, the NKVD issued a decree creating the position of rural enforcers, who monitored order at fairs and bazaars, the serviceability of roads, and guarded crime scenes until officials arrived In 1928, social assistance cells for the police (osodmil) appeared in many cities of the country They were subordinate to local councils, but the maximum effectiveness of the volunteers’ work was achieved through their direct interaction with law enforcement agencies Therefore, after 4 years, the Osodmils were renamed into police assistance brigades - brigademils The etymology of the word "combatant" is rooted in the past of Ancient Rus' Its princes needed fighters for personal protection and protection of their territories from external enemies, and to restore order within their domains The princely warriors were called warriors Among them were leaders - governors The vigilantes had many responsibilities The people who served at the court were the prince's confidants - they looked after his property, gave political advice, and raised his young male children Therefore, the choice of a name with a hysterical reference for groups of riot activists is not surprising The initiative to create VND, voluntary people's squads, belongs to the Kirov plant, located in Leningrad It was the workers of this enterprise who were the first to react to the resolution of the Council of Ministers of March 2, 1959 on the participation of workers in maintaining order in the USSR Following the 120 activists of the Kirov plant, squads were formed at the Nevsky Machine-Building Plant, Russian Diesel and other enterprises The distinctive symbols of the DND were red armbands and badges, awarded along with the organization’s membership certificate Activists from among the vigilantes not only patrolled populated areas, but also detained dangerous criminals, repeat offenders and violators of the USSR border In the ranks of the DND volunteers, selection, moral and initial professional training of personnel for the Soviet police took place In 1972, the number of vigilantes was almost 7 million people, in 1984 - already 13 million Every year, activists from the DND prevented many crimes and detained up to 5 thousand criminals The high moral consciousness of the Soviet people and sense of duty did not allow them to remain aloof from the problems of society, which is why they provided all possible assistance to the police in maintaining law and order in the country DND was disbanded in 1990 due to the collapse of the USSR But paying tribute to the history of the state and the initiatives of Soviet citizens, March 2 will forever remain in the memory of grateful descendants as the Day of the Creation of Voluntary People's Teams