CCTV cameras inside Mumbai locals

The 7/11 train blasts which left 187 people dead exposed how vulnerable Mumbai’s local train network was to terror attacks. Then it was widely agreed that security had to be stepped up throughout the railway apparatus, ie trains, stations, platforms, waiting rooms etc.

Western Railway had then agreed to install cameras on all stations between Churchgate and Virar, and Bandra terminus and Mumbai Central. So far, 60 CCTV cameras have been installed and Western Railway is in the process of hiring 530 more.

The latest effort of trying to step up security inside trains, Western Railway believes, will go a long way in restoring passenger confidence to a great extent. City-based Clearvision Digital Security System has provided the cameras which had been installed since March 8 but had been kept under wraps by the authorities.

Romi Anand, proprietor of Clearvision which provided CCTVs for security at Lalbaug Raja during Ganeshutsav and Haji Ali at the behest of Mumbai police, is understandably upbeat. “Along with the entrance, the cameras are able to capture the sitting and standing passenger areas from top. Apart from the security angle, we can also monitor incidents of chain snatching and pick-pocketing,’’ he said.

The cameras in coach 874 are Sony products with a 540 TV line resolution and are hooked onto a high-end digital video recorder (MPEG 4/H.264 format). “The recorder is inside the train but we cannot disclose its location due to security reasons,’’ said Anand. The system can provide a backup of 15 days.

According to Satyaprakash, the ongoing experiment will continue till the next month when Western Railway will have to take a final call. “We will study the cost factor and then decide whether CCTV cameras can be installed in other trains or not,’’ he said.