Encounter policy was put into effect..

When the gang wars and daylight shootouts began effecting common citizens, the policy of eliminating the gangsters in encounters was put into effect

To improve the English communication skills of his employees, the boss designed a training program and linked it to salary raises. This policy was put in to effect last year and has yielded good results.

“Put in to effect” – usually refers to a policy or a rule or a dictat coming in force. It is normally employed to convey the idea that some new set of procedures came in force from a particular date.

Let’s take some examples:

1. When the Mumbai mafia started a spree of broad day light shootings and inter gang killings, a policy of paying the gangsters back in their own coin was put into effect.
2. Curfew has been imposed in the city and strict prohibitory orders have been put into effect. The officers and the men have been instructed to immediately arrest any trouble makers.
3. A strict policy of performance linked salary raise has been put in place in the company as the pressure to achieve results has become much higher.
4. The new security measures put in place on the airport checkpoint include advance scanners to uncover any hidden explosives.

A similar but relatively broader phrase is, “Put in place”, which broadly means been set up. Put into effect has a more official and formal tinge to it so you’d encounter it a lot when talking/reading about official or semi-official policies or procedures.

Let’s take some more examples:

1. When the new visa rules were put into effect, it became more difficult for Indian students to get foreign visas.
2. After 1857, British put into effect an elaborate strategy of divide and rule at every level. Efforts were made to create enemity between Hindus and Muslims. Groups which participated in 1857 war were ignored and generally neglected while those which were neutral or sided with British were given preferential treatment. The concept of martial races also emerged from this idea.