Plainclothes police to tackle snatching in Noida
Newly appointed senior superintendent of police, Luv Kumar, said on Friday that all efforts will be made to ensure that the people in the district are not hassled by anti-social elements.
In view of the increasing incidents of chain and mobile snatching in Noida, the police have planned to intensify their patrolling and deploy personnel in plainclothes to nab the culprits.
Newly appointed senior superintendent of police, Luv Kumar, said on Friday that all efforts will be made to ensure that the people in the district are not hassled by anti-social elements.
“In my knowledge, several cases of chain and mobile snatching have been reported in Noida and I would like to assure the residents that police will take all efforts to ensure their safety. Places (where these incidents have taken place in the past) will be marked and the police will intensify patrolling of these areas,” Kumar said.
In the last month, according to details provided by station house officers of police stations across Noida, more than 50 incidents of snatching — of chains, mobile phones, purses and bags — were reported.
Among the 50 incidents, major incidents include robbery of Rs3.5 lakh on April 3, snatching of gold chains from five persons on April 5, forcing a snatching victim to withdraw Rs22,000 from an ATM on April 10 and robbery of a car on April 14.
Two incidents of chain snatching and mobile snatching at gunpoint on Wednesday and Thursday have left residents fearful. A gold chain was snatched from a woman near Sector 52 and two men were robbed of their valuables (mobile phone and wallet) and cash at gunpoint near Sector 46.
A week ago, two chain snatchers had allegedly fired upon people near Meghdootam Park in Sector 50.
In almost all the cases of chain and mobile snatching, the modus operandi has been similar — perpetrators on bikes overpowering victims by force or simply snatching valuables and fleeing.
Residents of Noida have repeatedly complained to the police and the administration about the rise in such incidents. “We have taken this issue to Noida MLA Pankaj Singh, former district magistrate NP Singh and superintendent of police (City) Dinesh Yadav, but, till now, no concrete action has been taken against the culprits. Residents feel unsafe on roads and the police are helpless,” Sanjeev Kumar, general secretary, residents’ welfare association of Sector 51, said.
Pankaj Singh also raised this issue in a meeting with residents of various sectors of Noida last Sunday.
“It is the responsibility of the police to ensure that the public of Noida feels safe while walking on the streets. I will take up this matter with the police and appeal for increased patrolling and deployment of more personnel in affected areas,” Singh said.
Taking cognizance of the matter, the SSP said that the police will track the activities of history-sheeters in the city and police personnel will be deployed in plain clothes in order to nab the culprits.
“We will launch a campaign against chain snatchers. Police will now be deployed in plain clothes in marked areas so that they can easily nab such culprits. They will blend in with the crowd without raising any suspicion,” Kumar said.
