CCTV-eye-on-road hits allocation hurdle

Minister of State for Home Satej Patil had earlier put the responsibility of funding the project on the district administration and the money was supposed to be allocated in the annual district plan. The administration has stated that the nod for the CCTV project had come much after the annual plan for 2010-11 was cleared in November last year and they did not have extra funds to carry the proposal forward.

“The CCTV proposal came early this year. The district administration got the annual plan cleared last year and we have just Rs 10.12 crore for innovative schemes which includes nearly 40 projects awaiting clearance. Moreover,the estimated expense for putting up CCTVs does not fall within our budget,’’ said district collector Vikas Deshmukh.

He told Newsline that he had written to the Pune police commissioner regarding the situation.

Although positive about the project,he suggested the administration run a pilot in a few chowkies rather than take up the project for the entire city at one go.

Satej Patil had mooted the project in a meeting early this year. “CCTVs would help give real-time details and have been successfully implemented in Bangalore. A similar drive should be carried out in Pune. We hope the administration makes the necessary allocation,’’ Patil had said.

With the district administration expressing inability to fund the whole project,the state would have to look at alternatives for fund allocation. “The proposal is pending with the home department and if the district administration has expressed inability to fund the project,the state would have to find other means to fund it,’’ said a senior home department official.

Former DCP (traffic) Pune Manoj Patil who has been following up the CCTV initiative,said the project would bring the needed vigil on traffic offenders and help in better surveillance.

Following the 26/11 attacks,the home department had decided to fit Internet protocol based video surveillance cameras at malls,airports,railway stations and traffic junctions in Mumbai. The system helps transfer data through high-speed cables addressing security needs and helping in effective traffic management.

The Mumbai project estimated at Rs 150 crore was cleared in the annual budget and involved 1500 fixed-dome stationary cameras,400 pan-tilt-zoom cameras that can be moved in two axes and 15 long-range thermal-imaging cameras for night vigil on the coast. “The Pune project was to be similar to the Mumbai one,except that these would be at traffic junctions alone,’’ said a senior home department official.

Collectorspeak

The district administration got the annual plan cleared last year.

It has just Rs 10.12 crore for innovative schemes which includes nearly 40 projects awaiting

clearance.

Moreover,the estimated expense for putting up CCTVs does not fall within our budget