MARGAO
Strange it may seem, but true that the men-in-uniform in Margao has been knocking the doors of local businessmen for a different reason “ to fund the Closed Circuit TV surveillance cameras in the commercial capital.
And, the reason is simple. With the CCTV surveillance cameras not on the top priority list of the government and the local Margao civic body, the Margao police has been left with no other option than to approach local business groups as part of efforts to ensure the safety and security of the citizens.
So far, the initiative has seen Margao police station in-charge, PI Ditendra Naik having discussions with different group of businessmen from across the city to make the CCTV project a reality.
Sources said the police is believed to have impressed upon the businessmen to cooperate and contribute their resources to fund the project. “Right now, the police only had discussions with different groups of businessmen. The intention is to get the businessmen involved in reviving the CCTV footage project, with no support and help coming from the Margao civic body,” remarked a police officer.
He added: “We will be having another round of meeting with the businessmen to discuss how to take the project forward and to its logical conclusion. It’s not just the procurement of cameras the police is looking at, but the maintenance of the cameras after their installation.”
Inquiries by The Goan has revealed that 23 cameras, which were repaired and revived last year post-murder of a young city-jeweller, Swapnil Walke, now remain defunct. Reason. The Margao Municipal Council has not cleared the maintenance bill of the agency that had undertaken the repair and restoration of the defunct cameras.
In fact, it’s now more than five months the new Margao civic body at its first meeting chaired by newly-elected Chairperson Lyndon Pereira had resolved not only to clear the maintenance bill of the agency, but to prepare a comprehensive CCTV surveillance cameras project and submit the proposal to the Members of Parliament to fund the project under the MPLAD scheme, but in vain.
Margao Municipal officials, however, have defended the delay in clearing the maintenance bills of the agency to the delay in receiving the sanction from the Information Technology department. Margao Municipal Engineer, Manoj Arsekar informed though the civic body had sent the proposed bill to the IT department for approval, nothing has come till date. “We have been reminding the IT department to accord the sanction, but in vain. Hope we receive the sanction from the IT department at the earliest in the New Year,” Arsekar added.
Civic officials further informed that the proposal to approach the MPs to fund the CCTV camera project in the commercial capital has also not moved forward till date.
Incidentally, the Margao Traffic Department too has been hit over the delay in repairing the defunct CCTV cameras. With the CCTV cameras defunct and non-functioning, monitoring the traffic movement and violating the traffic violator from the Margao traffic cell has come to a stop.
Deputy Superintendent of Police, Traffic Prabodh Shirwaikar informed that the Traffic cell had once again recently reminded the Margao Municipal Council to revive the CCTV surveillance cameras on priority, but in vain. “My office will again write to the MMC Chief Officer to revive the CCTV project not just from the traffic point of view, but from the safety and security point of view of the citizens,” DySP Shirwaikar added.
