BHUBANESWAR: The crime graph in Twin City may have been upwardly mobile in last year and a half but the Special Crime Unit of Commissionerate Police is sitting idle.
For record’s sake, between January and August this year, at least 30 murder cases were reported in the State Capital. In the last 20 days, three cases of murders were registered including one that occurred just a few hundred metres away from the DCP office in Vani Vihar on August 30 night.
However, marred by acute shortage of staff, the special unit which was established in December last year, is unable to lend heft to the fight against organised crime in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. The government created 59 posts for the Special Crime Unit by abolishing 63 posts of 2nd (SS) Battalion of Odisha State Armed Police in Keonjhar. The unit’s sanctioned posts consists of a Deputy Commissioner of Police and Additional DCP each (for the two cities), three Assistant Commissioners of Police (ACP) and nine inspectors.
Besides 12 sub-inspectors, three ASIs and as many constables in the communications wing, and 27 general duty constables were sanctioned for the unit. However, as of now the unit has only one DCP, three ACPs, one inspector and ASI each and about four to five constables. The remaining posts are lying vacant.
The special unit was created primarily to share intelligence and conduct raids along with police stations of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack Urban Police Districts (UPDs). “Since maximum posts in the ranks of inspector, SIs and constables are still yet to be filled up, we are yet to start work in a full-fledged manner,” said an officer requesting anonymity.
The unit has three wings - Narcotics, Anti-fraud and Organised Crime - and it functions from the Commissionerate Police headquarters in the Capital City. However, unlike the Special Task Force (STF) of Crime Branch, the Commissionerate Police’s crime unit is not vested with power to register cases and file chargesheet. An officer of the special crime unit can only take up investigation of a case and file chargesheet after receiving orders from Bhubaneswar-Cuttack Police Commissioner SK Priyadarsi.
As per the Home department’s order, the Special Crime Unit was established to monitor and analyse serious and complex crimes taking place under Commissionerate Police jurisdiction. The unit has also been tasked with the responsibility of preventing, detecting and controlling serious crimes.
Contacted, DCP (Crime) Sudam Charan Sahoo, who is supervising the unit said his hopeful the vacant posts will be filled up soon.
With the Durga Puja celebrations with large-scale public participation after a gap of two years happening this year, police sources say, the two cities could have done with the help of the special unit as there has been no let up in crimes. The State Capital has registered around 447 robbery cases, 60 rape and 19 dacoity incidents in the last eight months.