Hyderabad:Hyderabad police commissioner V.C. Sajjanar has said that the city police would have two separate teams — one for security and another for investigation. He also identified that over 4.40 lakh CCTV cameras are not working property or the quality is substandard.
After taking charge, Sajjanar had inspected the seven zones of the city along with respective station house officers and suggested over 200 corrective actions, which includes ramping up the strength of the police personnel.
The decision to separate the investigation and security wings came against the backdrop of some officials saying that security duty was impairing the police ability to prevent and investigate crime, leading to a rise in criminal activities in VIP areas, say police personnel.
“In some areas, our officers are mostly busy with bandobast and traffic diversions, which increases their workload affecting criminal investigation,” said a police officer, on the condition of anonymity.
He said the police had developed a strong informant network. “Even after getting a tip on a possible crime, we cannot act immediately. Our crime teams and law and order force are supposed to focus on their work which includes cordon searches, surprise checks, surveillance on unsocial elements apart from doing official paperwork.
“Each police station has on an average four to seven sectors, headed by a sub-inspector. But many of them are hardly aware of crime-prone areas in their jurisdiction, and seek guidance from the constables, homeguards, and drivers. CCTV cameras in most areas are defunct,” he explained.
