It seems that burglars are having a free run in the district. The number of theft cases, be it big or small, is going steadily up in the city as well as in the rural areas, but in most of the cases, the cops are clueless about the culprits.
It has been almost one month since 291 sovereigns of gold were stolen from Pangode Residents’ Cooperative Society at Edapazhanji and the police are still groping in the dark. The efforts of the cops, including sending a team to neighbouring states, has yielded no results.
On an average, around 15 theft and chain-snatching cases are reported in the city limits in a month. Apartments which were once considered as safe beyond the reach of thieves are also being targeted now. Two thefts were reported from two apartments, one at Jawahar Nagar and one at Poojappura, during the past two months.
“When we decided to live in flats, the major relief was that we were supposed to be safe from thieves. But the reports of thefts in flats now make us think that that feeling was misplaced,” says a Shali Titus, a housewife residing at one of the apartments in Kannammoola.
On roads too, gold and money are not safe, in spite of the 24 X 7 vigilance of surveillance cameras. On November 9, a gold chain of four sovereigns of a nursing college superintendent was snatched when she was travelling with her husband on a bike. The incident occurred in broad daylight near Chackai. At Kowdiar Junction, the other day, it was the public who apprehended a person who tried to snatch the gold chain of a woman.
At Killipalam, last week, a person was attacked by a two-member gang and money stolen from him. At Kallara, in the outskirts of the city, Rs one lakh was stolen from the house of one Rajeena.
Compared to the increasing theft cases, the number of chain-snatchers and thieves being nabbed by the cops is less. “The police are making every effort to prevent thefts and similar incidents. It cannot say that the cases are increasing or something like that,” says City Police Commissioner T J Jose. However, the people feel the need for more concrete action from the police.