Daily Times

SUKKUR: More than 42 close circuit (CCTV) cameras which were installed in 2012 at a cost of more than Rs.11 million in different parts of Sukkur are out of order for the last two years, Daily Times learnt on Sunday.

According to details obtained by this scribe Sukkur police had launched a ‘video surveillance system’, for the city in 2012 which has more than 42 closed-circuit television cameras across Sukkur and the historical city of Rohri, most of these have been found ineffective in identifying people as a senior police officer believe that at least 2-megapixel devices are helpful in monitoring but they do not provide a worthwhile result.

“The footage was considered crucial as it has happened on many occasions that the movement of criminals were recorded a few minutes before or after the incident.

“With quality cameras and other related system, the police can use the pictures of the accused persons from the CCTV footage and released them to the media at the time of necessity for identification of those suspects and to seek the people’s help in their identification. But during all this process Sukkur police could not be succeeded in getting help of these camera as the pictures obtained from these CCTV cameras were of very poor quality.”

Due to political involvement and lack of will, these multi million project had become ineffective as the most of CCTV cameras like, Clock tower, Muhammad Bin Qasim Park, Lab-e-Mehran, Teer Chowk, Karbala Mohalla remain out of orders for last three years.

A senior official Sukkur police confirmed that the cameras installed across the twin cities were of low-megapixel quality, due to which attempts to identify the suspects through these devices had failed.

Concerns about the utility of CCTV camera surveillance arise not only from the investigators of police, but also from civil society and trade union bodies, which want to make city crimes free ranging from terrorist activities to killings and from extortion to kidnapping for ransom.

According to information obtained by CID department “The only surveillance cameras which have been effective so far in identification of suspects are those installed inside ATM facilities by the banks.”

Published in Daily Times, July 3^rd, 2017.