Install LHMS App while going out on vacation, Vijayawada police urge denizens
VIJAYAWADA: With the number of crimes, particularly house burglaries, on the rise, the Vijayawada city police are advising the denizens to use the Locked House Monitoring System (LHMS) mobile application to secure their houses while going out on vacation.
The city police launched the LHMS App in 2017 to prevent burglaries when the owners are out of town, particularly during the vacation. The LHMS App has been used by only 184 people this year, compared to 1,772 people in 2019, and 28,505 in 2018.
“The year it was launched, we received just 451 applications from the public through the app, but later we started getting a good response. However, due to lack of awareness, people are not utilising the service,” said Police Commissioner Bathini Sreenivasulu. The LHMS App can be downloaded from the Google Play Store, and one can use it to tell the police on which dates the house will be unoccupied. Users will have to register 24 hours before they leave the house, so the police can install surveillance cameras.
After receiving a request, personnel from the police station concerned visit the house and install a wireless motion camera, UPS and wi-fi modem. “Suspicious movements in the locked houses are communicated to the control room and the information is passed on to the ground-level personnel, who will rush to the house in less than 10 minutes. The same will be sent to the owner’s phone,” Sreenivasulu explained.
He also advised the public to keep their valuables in bank lockers before going on vacation. “We are going to start awareness campaigns and conduct seminars in all police station limits to raise awareness among the public on the LHMS App,” Sreenivasulu said.