MYSURU: The Mysuru city police are going the extra mile towards ensuring a safe and hassle-free Dasara this year. With the grand event expected to see huge tourist footfalls from across the globe, it is imperative that the law enforcement authorities keep an eye out for anyone with criminal antecedents, who could target the City of Palaces.
To keep a tab on such elements, the police have stepped up surveillance, besides effectively using fingerprint-scanning devices which have come as a ‘smart’ solution for identifying suspicious people roaming around the city.
Usually, the police would find it difficult to trace someone roaming suspiciously on the streets of Mysuru, as they had to quiz many suspects to get details, besides surfing through criminal records. However, now with the Mobile-Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System (M-CCTNS), which has a database of criminals, police can record the fingerprints of any suspicious person lurking around and find out if heshe has any criminal record.
The system will alert officials with any past history, case number, nature of crime, and the jurisdictional police station where the offense had taken place. Speaking to The New Indian Express, Mysuru City Police Commissioner Dr Chandragupta said the device has been used in all police stations, especially for the night beats to verify the background of suspicious people roaming on Mysuru’s streets.
“In the past one year, over 5,920 suspicious persons have been scanned, of whom fingerprints of 160 have matched. As part of the surveillance during Dasara, we are using these devices effectively to keep a strict vigil on criminals who could come to the city,” he said.
The commissioner further said that in addition to using these devices, police personnel from the crime units of various other districts are also roped in to identify such criminals and gangs which would take advantage of a situation.