Cops’ nightmare Katraj Ghat

Katraj Ghat had hit headlines in the past when bodies of murder victims used to be frequently found there. Police said the victims were either murdered there or killed elsewhere and their bodies dumped at the Ghat. Wakude added,“Keeping this in mind,a checkpost was started in the area and since then such crimes have come down.

Robbers used to waylay and loot people passing through the area. Such robberies have also come down,police said. “A joint police team with staff from the headquarters,traffic police and our police station patrol the area. Last year,three murders were registered. We solved two of the cases.”

An officer with Katraj police said,“Though the checkpost has brought down number of crimes,robberies still take place. Intensive patrolling is needed but is not always possible as there’s a staff crunch at Bharati Vidyapeeth police station as well as the rural police.”

Katraj also witnesses a large number of vehicle thefts,mostly city limit areas. “We work in unison with rural police. Sometimes one is not very clear of jurisdiction so teams from both city and rural police rush to the spot.” Wakude said,adding,“As highways to Satara and Mumbai come under our jurisdiction,accidents also form a major chunk registered cases. But the number is not more than average.”