Petty crimes, huge headache

From manhole covers to BSNL wires, from stealing taps to batteries, from jewellery to cash kept in cars and even flush pipes and flush covers, not to forget cycle rickshaws, jewellery, cash, mobiles, credit cards and laptops- thieves never had it so easy in City Beautiful where thefts are being committed in broad daylight. Finding their homes ransacked on coming back homes is increasingly becoming a common instance as residents lose their peace of mind as well as money.

Till November 20 this year, the city has seen 1,808 cases of theft. In 2007, the total number of theft cases registered was 1,740. The police managed to arrest 693 thieves.

In 2006, 1,234 thefts were reported and the police arrested thieves in only 732 cases. In 2005, the city saw 1,373 thefts.

Statistics collected from the three sub-divisions of the police reveal that the maximum number of thefts occurred in the southern sectors of the city 8212; 733 till October 31. A total of 466 thefts have taken place in the eastern sub-division which caters to police station in Sector 19, Industrial Area, Manimajra and Sector 26. Around 585 thefts have been reported in the jurisdiction of the Central sub division which includes Sector 17, Sector 3 and Sector 11. The maximum thefts have been reported in Sector-39 police station 8211; 249.

A total of 465 motor vehicle thefts have been reported from the southern sub-division of the police, while 188 motor vehicles have been stolen from the eastern sub-division.

8220;The high number of thefts is because of free registration of cases. We have been registering FIRs for petty thefts too.

Even if a person is caught stealing, we book him in a case of theft so that we can get to the root of the problem and conduct a thorough probe.

For checking the motor vehicle thefts too, we have been sealing the sectors and will seal Sector 15 and 46 as well to check these thefts,8221; said UT SSP S S Srivastava.

Case studies

Love for jazz: A gang of four teenagers, including a girl, enter Taj Hotel in Sector 17to attend a function and decamp with a bag of containing jewellery worth Rs 5 lakh. Dressed in snazzy clothes, the four manage to con everyone present in the party besides the police. Even the CCTV camera footage could not help the police grope identify the accused.
Vehicle thefts: On an average three to four vehicles are lifted from the city parking lots or residential areas every day. Thieves have graduated from stealing Marutis to swanky SUVs. The police have been nabbing car thieves from time to time, but have failed to check the rising car thefts in the city.
Breaking car window panes-Getting his car serviced earlier cost a city resident dear as thieves decamped with his bag containing over Rs 1 lakh by breaking open the window of the car in February this year. Abhi Bhasin had come to Swami Automobiles to get his car serviced. The cash bag was lying in another car which belonged to his friend. As Abhi went inside the showroom with his friend, thieves fled with the booty. Similar cases of stealing cash in Sector 22 and 35 markets have been witnessed.
Manhole covers: Thieves are making easy money by stealing wrought-iron covers of drains and large manhole covers in the streets. They fetch reasonable money in the scrap market.
Tanishq theft: Even as the Ajmer police arrested a member of the gang of five who fled with jewellery worth Rs 6 lakh from a Tanishq showroom in Sector 17, the remaining four members of the gang are still absconding. The Chandigarh police have brought the accused on production warrants but failed to get any further leads. The only saving grace is that the stolen cash has been recovered.
Even 8216;VIP streets8217; in the city are not safe. In Sector 28-A, the neighbours of local MP Pawan Kumar Bansal, are complaining of series of thefts, all of which are unsolved at present.
Stealing cables:Hundreds of residents of Sector 36 faced a harrowing time in August this year as BSNL landline phones have been non-functional for the past several days. Over 600 BSNL telephone lines have been non-functional as BSNL wires over 20-30 metres long were stolen. Many instances of copper wires and underground cables being stolen were reported from Manimjara police station in May this year, but the police are still clueless regarding a majority of the crimes.