Police say more and more young people are now interested in joining the force and it aims to recruit another 400 officers and 80 inspectors in the next few months.

With almost 6,000 vacancies across various departments, the force held a recruitment day on Sunday, giving people a taste of what it feels to like to wear the uniform, and even fire a gun.

"We have set up a mock firearm experience station so participants can experience the shock of a pistol firing a bullet, and also see how police constables receive weapons training," Senior Superintendent Mike Kwok told reporters.

"We also set up a booth that consists of AI police uniforms, where participants can try on different police attire and take photos."

Almost 1,300 people attended the event, with 400 submitting applications on the spot, the force said.

Kwok said more than 9,000 applications for officer and inspector roles were received between April 1 and November 30, a 5.4 percent increase on the same period last year.

Around 600 new officers were taken on, along with about 120 probationary inspectors.

"We see more and more young people being interested in police work," Kwok said.

Asked whether a relaxation in eligibility requirements from May 2023 contributed to the increase in applications, Kwok said the force is trying to "snatch talent".

"We hope our market competitiveness will suit societal demands. Of course we would want as much applicants as possible. But I think the increase was mainly due to people being interested in the job as we have held a lot of recruitment activities in local and mainland universities," he said.