E-spies for Palika

The New Delhi Municipal Council has installed 49 closed circuit television cameras at the air-conditioned market in the heart of Delhi. The set-up will be inaugurated soon, reports Neelam Pandey.

Delhi Police have now got 49 extra pair of eyes to watch over Palika Bazaar, Delhi's only underground market.

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The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has installed 49 closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras at the air-conditioned market in the heart of Delhi. The set-up will be inaugurated soon.

A monitor room has been set up for surveillance at the Palika parking, a point from where the security staff will keep an eye on all the activity in the market and its surrounding area which has many makeshift shops.

These cameras will keep a watch not only on the market but the Palika Kendra and Central Park, one of the bomb blast sites in Delhi.

“These cameras have been installed at the various entry and exit points of the market and at Central Park,” said Anand Tiwari, NDMC spokesman. “We want to provide a safe environment to shoppers and those who frequent the area.”

Vinay Kumar, general secretary of Palika Bazaar Shopkeepers’ Welfare Association, said they have been demanding CCTV cameras for the past two years but nothing was done for long.

“We put up nine CCTV cameras at the entrances, which Delhi Police could access, but there were no cameras inside the market,” he said. “We are quite happy that the NDMC has finally set up these cameras.”

The 49 cameras have been installed at the cost of Rs 1.2 crore and the contract is for eight years. The data would be saved for a week after which it will be deleted.

“Delhi Police have been given access so that they can keep an eye on the activities inside the market,” said a senior official of the civic body who did not want to be named.

The civic body next plans to install CCTV cameras at Connaught Place.