GUWAHATI, Dec 19 � Guwahati city police is planning a number of initiatives to reduce the rising crime rate in and around the burgeoning settlement. Well placed sources told this correspondent that the plan puts emphasis on improved intelligence, area domination, and better co-operation with civil society.
The new initiatives will bring to focus some areas which have been identified as more crime prone than others. Increased patrolling and monitoring in such places are likely to deter criminal activities. The police are already in possession of data which identifies areas from where cases are being reported very frequently.
Acknowledging that intelligence gathering is a crucial element in policing, sources said that a good network of informers confront criminals in a manner that is efficient yet cost effective.
Police will also be keeping in radar some areas which have seen a spurt in the number of new settlers. Keeping those under watch has been prompted by different types of crimes being reported in the recent past. A senior police official said, �These are areas which witnessed little or no crimes till a few years ago. But now we are seeing a rise in crimes.� What makes it difficult for the police in these new settlements is the fact - people do not know one another well enough, and the antecedents of some are difficult to establish when required during an investigation.
In a recent interaction with the media, city SSP AJ Baruah had noted that police will also intensify monitoring and patrolling in areas close to Deepor Beel and other areas where bodies have been recovered in the last few months. There will be more patrolling by police personnel in those areas to frustrate criminals who could frequent those less populated areas.
Increased interaction between police officials and local civil society groups are also on the cards. This move will ensure that police personnel in local thanas can become more accessible the public, and trust in the uniformed force gets a boost. Many metros across the world have brought down crime rates by building close ties between the police force and communities.
However, it was learnt that the city police is yet to have an effective action plan to tackle the menace of drunk driving on city roads. In winter with visibility already low during night-time, an aggressive plan from the police to combat inebriated drivers would have saved loss of lives and property.
The shortage of police personnel at the ground level is also emerging as a major concern in policing the city. A good number of police personnel are detailed in VIP duties, which ensures that the response time of the police suffers in many cases.
