Vadodara: Police begin installing CCTVs in old city

The statement comes two days after The Indian Express reported about the Vadodara police’s efforts to maintain law and order in the walled city area by holding confidence building peace meetings with community leaders.

Commissioner of Police Anupam Singh Gahlaut had told this newspaper that the police had removed CCTV cameras as the department was unable to bear the expense of the steep annual rent of the service following the discontinuation of the grant by the state government. Instead, Gahlaut had said that the department along with the smart city corporation was working on putting up better self-owned cameras.

The release added that 350 cameras would be installed in the walled city area in the first phase, following which about 750 additional cameras would be deployed at various places across the city. The police is also working on installing Clear View AI app on the cameras in order to enhance crime detection. The release from the department mentions that the cameras will soon be equipped with an advanced facial recognition software to help nab suspects in cases of crime.

The city police has already registered an FIR against unknown persons on Friday for spreading rumours among the residents of the walled city that they must be on guard as the police was “purposely taking down cameras”.

Meanwhile, the various police departments of the city police conducted a foot patrol of their respective areas, joined by the state reserve police force. A top official of the police department said the patrolling was part of the police department’s effort to ensure calm in the city.

On Saturday, the Vadodara chapter of the youth Chhatra Sansad also called off an event to hold a gathering that would meditate for peace and harmony in the country, which is “descending into dread and despair”. Advocate Kunal Sharma, who heads the organisation in Vadodara, said the event was cancelled after requests from the local residents to “refrain from holding any kind of events that could jeopardize the safety and peace of the area if viewed as undesirable” by anyone. The group also said the police had denied permission for the event.