The developed, but sleepy, outskirts of the city have become haven for anti-social elements who are increasingly targeting the residences located there. The vulnerability of these areas, including Bopal and Ghuma, not only stem from its vast area size, but also a startling police-public ratio.
The other reasons include low occupancy rate here and its proximity to the state highways.
“The total strength of Bopal police station is 43 personnel, of which around 35 are present on any given day. This number includes administrative staff such as drivers, writers and station officers.
Taking these away, the field strength comes down to around 20,” said Bopal police inspector, AB Valand.
These 20 personnel look after Bopal and Ghuma, which together comprise as many as two lakh residents, police sources said. This translates into a cop for every 10,000 residents. No wonder then, that task of patrolling the entire area gets daunting and thieves leverage on this worst predicament.
Before the theft in the posh bungalow of folk singer Farida Mir, a gang of robbers had targeted a 68-year-old yoga teacher and thrashed him at his second home in a posh society of Ghuma near Bopal on August 14.
“Majority of the area’s residences are second or weekend homes. Less than 30% of the house owners are full-time residents here. At the same time, barely any of these part-time residents inform us when their property will be unattended, which could help identify vulnerable spots,” Valand said.
The police have put up fliers outside various societies to inform the public of their duties including informing the police when they are away from home, he added. In March this year, thieves had wreaked havoc on Bopal residents, orchestrating multiple robberies on consecutive nights. They had even thrashed senior citizen victims as well as pelted stones at the victims’ homes. The gang, found to be Godhra-based, visited Bopal for robberies and scamper off before the night was over.
Following this, the A’bad district (rural) police had announced the deployment of 100 SRP and home guards each, two PIs, three PSIs and eight mounted policemen. They were eventually withdrawn. However, the three PSIs still help conduct patrolling every night.
