Bhubaneswar: Men in uniform often wear a tough image and perceived to be tough taskmasters, but they too have a humane side.

Odisha-born flamboyant IPS officer Basant Kumar Rath is again making waves in Jammu & Kashmir: This time for his large-heartedness. The dabang police officer, who made headlines for streamlining the traffic system in Jammu, is spreading knowledge in the insurgency-hit state.

The tough cop is distributing a diverse array of books to students preparing to crack entrance examinations, pursuing their graduation or post-graduation or professional courses.

The drawing room of the 45-year-old bureaucrat is replete with books mounting up to nearly 3 lakhs. Rath puts messages about the availability of books on his Twitter timeline or other social media platforms. While he seeks only address and mobile number, he doesn’t much entertain exchange of dialogue.

Friends, please don’t Whatsapp, DM or mail me your book requests unless I ask you to do it. If you need a book, just fill up the Book Baba google form. Sabr ka phal kitaab hota hai. https://t.co/Iw4FKcJBl2

— Basant بسنت (@KangriCarrier) July 12, 2019

The students are required to fill Google docs-based form – ‘Book baba’ – to place a request.

“When I was a kid, I wanted to read a lot of books. We were poor and my mother used to starve so that she could feed us. I want to help students in J&K and want them to read as much they want to,” Rath told Odisha Sun Times.

While several thousand books have been delivered, nearly 4900 more requests are still pending.

Friends, as of now - right now - I’ve got 4,878 book requests to take care of. I use various parameters to decide which ones should get immediate attention and which ones shouldn’t. I request you to be patient. I won’t distribute Yuval Noah Harari, Orhan Pamuk and etc. any more. pic.twitter.com/8pQRo2TRAO

— Basant بسنت (@KangriCarrier) July 16, 2019

“When I was studying Sociology in BJB College, Rabi Sir used to teach us sociology of education.  It is in his classes that I realised the importance of good quality education as an agent of social change. Education alone can help our talent reach its true heights,” he expressed.

Rath further said that he has few sponsors who do not wish to be named.