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at the Metropolitan Training School, Hendon, or at other training centres. In 1962, 13 overseas officers and nine local officers attended one or other of these courses. Special courses of various kinds are organized locally from time to time and this year these included a police staff course and two courses for riot company commanders. The Special Branch is responsible for preventing and detecting subversive activities in the Colony and for supplying the intel- ligence necessary to maintain internal security. At the beginning of the year the registration of approved societies was transferred from Special Branch to the licensing section of Police Headquarters. The headquarters of the Criminal Investigation Department is accommodated in the Police Headquarters building. There are sub- ordinate offices in each of the three police districts and these control the work of CID personnel working in the divisions. In January some decentralization of control was introduced on a trial basis. The object was to give more responsibility for CID work to divisional superintendents and to integrate the resources of the uniformed branch and divisional CID personnel so that both work together in the investigation of crime.
Specialized units dealing with triad activities, criminal records, forensic science, ballistics, identification and the prevention of crime remain under the direct control of CID headquarters and their services are available to districts as required. The anti- corruption branch, narcotics bureau and commercial crime section are also controlled by the Director of Criminal Investigation.
Crime. The rate of crime in Hong Kong during the year re- mained low and there was an encouraging increase in the detection rate. While certain types of larceny increased, notably larceny from vehicles, others—including larceny from the person and miscel- laneous larceny decreased. Details of all classes of crime are given at Appendix IX.
Narcotics. The drive against narcotics continued. The price of narcotics in Hong Kong remained high during the year, and this is normally a sign that preventive measures are effective. The work of the narcotics bureau and other sections of the force whose efforts are specially directed against drug traffic and addiction are only one aspect of Government's campaign. Other specialist ser- vices to combat drug traffic, to apprehend offenders, to cure addicts and to arouse the public conscience against the evils associated