In the pre-independence era, Kerala was divided into princely states of Travancore and Cochin and the Malabar region for the smooth administration. There was no Commissionerate in Kollam until 2011. The whole district police was administered by DySP of Kollam, Karunagappally, Kottarakkara and Punalur. As per the Government Order no 32/2011/Home dated 5 February 2011, Kollam district police was divided into Kollam Urban Police District (Kollam City Police) and Kollam Rural Police District. The City Police is headed by a City Police Commissioner(CP), with its headquarters at Kollam. The rural police is headed by the District Police Chief (DPC), with its headquarters at Kottarakkara. Both heads report to the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Thiruvananthapuram Range (Kerala). The Kollam City Police came into existence on 1March 2011 following the division of the Kollam District Police force into the Kollam City Police and the Kollam Rural Police.
