Chandigarh: 41 CCTV cameras at 13 entry-exit points of city not working

Police officers say these cameras shall soon be replaced with new ones.

The Chandigarh Police had installed these 100 CCTV cameras to improve security and surveillance, mainly at entry-exit points of Chandigarh bordering Panchkula in Haryana and Mohali in Punjab.

The points where CCTVs are not functioning include Zirakpur-Chandigarh barrier, Fun Republic junction, Sector 48/49/50/51 light point, Furniture Market crossing, Palsora village in Sector 61 bordering Mohali, Sector 61, Mullanpur barrier, Sarangpur barrier and Togan village barrier.

Considering that the city police is on a high alert these days, non-functioning of cameras can be considered a major security lapse.

Deputy Advocate General Sandeep Kumar, a local resident, said, “Due to the terror activities these days, the city is also under a constant threat since a large number of vital installations are located here. If the CCTVs stop functioning, it poses a major security risk.”

A policeman deployed at Fun Republic barrier said, “CCTV cameras at this barrier are 10 years old and two of them have turned a bit foggy due to which the officials face difficulties and did not serve any purpose. At least six CCTVs installed at Palsora barrier were damaged a few years ago. While three were replaced and are functional, three CCTVs still await replacement.”

Another police officer said, “Police control room officers are being informed regularly about the status of all the CCTVs. A daily report of the cameras, whether working or not, is sent by the police personnel at the barrier to the senior officers.”

One of the police officers monitoring these cameras said, “The cameras were removed from Mullanpur barrier, Sarangpur barrier and from Togan barrier, because those were found non-functional.”

Senior Superintendent of Police Nilambari Jagdale admitted that certain CCTVs were non-functional but added that those shall soon be replaced with new ones. “Indeed, a number of CCTVs are not functioning. A few of these were removed. But we have installed 56 other standby cameras all across the city, including a few at entry-exit points as well. These cameras are fully functional. Besides this, I also appeal to city residents that they should too install CCTV cameras in their localities on the locations suggested by the area police. A few days ago, Resident Welfare Association (RWA) of Sector 38 (West) installed 15 high-resolution CCTV cameras, which are able to record the 360 degree view,” SSP Jagdale told Chandigarh Newsline.

“We have other plans of increasing surveillance across the city. These plans shall follow along the Smart City project. We are recommending subsidies for the RWAs, who are installing cameras at vulnerable locations,” SSP Jagdale added.