CCTVs to keep city safe

The state plans to start monitoring the movements of people in the city — at major roads, railway stations, malls, banks and temples.

The state plans to start monitoring the movements of people in the city — at major roads, railway stations, malls, banks and temples.

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The government is considering a Rs 150-crore proposal to put the city under 24x7 surveillance by installing closed circuit TV cameras (CCTVs).

On Wednesday, the police, led by Mumbai Police Commissioner Hasan Gafoor, placed the proposal before the Cabinet committee on security. “We are inclined to clear this proposal,” said Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal, who heads the panel.

“Details of this network and control rooms have to be worked out.”

The surveillance model may be like London’s; it has a network of around 15,000 public CCTVs. “We have asked the police to study various security measures adapted by the US and London post terror attacks. We can emulate them,” he said.

The CCTVs will be more sophisticated than those at some railway stations and will be able to alert operators about suspicious objects. The cameras will also provide digital printouts of images.

The Cabinet panel that will clear the project was set up after 26/11 to facilitate security programmes. Plans okayed are likely to get quick Cabinet clearance.