PUNJAB POLICE TO BOOST CCTV SURVEILLANCE AT CRIME HOTSPOTS, POINT-OF-SALE OF DRUG HOTSPOTS: DGP PUNJAB

Jalandhar News: In a move aimed at curbing petty crimes and drug trafficking in the state, Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav on Tuesday said that Punjab Police is all set to intensify Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras saturation at snatching and points of sale of drugs hotspots across the state.

He said that CCTV control rooms are being established at district and sub-divisional levels for real-time monitoring. This move comes after a comprehensive crime hotspot mapping of such crime hotspots and points of sale of drugs over the last three years.

The DGP was chairing a state-level Law and Order review meeting with all the senior field officers and Heads of Operational Wings to evaluate performance of all the 28 Police districts and take stock of the ongoing fight against organised crime, drug trafficking and terrorism at the PAP Complex Jalandhar. The meeting was attended by the heads of various special units of Punjab, including the Anti Narcotics Task Force (ANTF), Railways, Anti Gangster Task Force (AGTF), Counter Intelligence, Internal Security, Law & Order, Intelligence, Administration, Bureau of Investigation, Community Affairs Division, and Provisioning. All Senior Superintendents of Police (SSPs), Commissioners of Police (CPs), and Range IGs/DIGs in Punjab were also present in the meeting.

Terming ‘curbing petty crimes’ as the topmost priorities of the Punjab Police, DGP Gaurav Yadav said that field officers have been directed to use all the mechanisms to make our action effective and to address crimes affecting citizen security especially extortion calls, snatching, theft, and burglary, and action against drugs at point of sale. CPs/SSPs have been directed to deal with such criminals with iron hand and make maximum use of section 68F of the NDPS to freeze illegally acquired property by the drug suppliers, he said.

Ahead of Panchayat elections in state, the DGP also reviewed the security arrangements across the state and directed all the officers to ensure free and fair elections. He asked the officers to lay effective nakas to keep vigil on the movement of anti-social elements, drug smugglers and bootleggers.

In wake of forthcoming festival season, he also stressed on the need to enhance vigilance and dominance in the areas with high footfall while ensuring minimum inconvenience to the general public.

During the meeting, SSPs and CPs have been directed to prepare history-sheets, take exemplary action against violent crimes, enhance surveillance, utilise technology for crime detection, and ensure the seizure of properties belonging to drug traffickers.

Meanwhile, the DGP Punjab also took feedback from all the CPs/SSPs to understand practical issues being faced at ground level. He asked CPs/SSPs to hold weekly crime review meetings with all the sub-divisional DSPs and station house officers (SHOs). He also asked CPs/SSPs to make sure inspection of Police Stations formally or informally frequently.