In Maharashtra's Beed, traffic cops introduce hi-tech 'body worn' cameras

The police in Maharashtra's Beed district on Wednesday introduced the hi-tech 'body worn' cameras for the traffic personnel to record their interactions with motorists and keep an extra eye on the vehicular movement.

The recordings made in these tiny cameras, to be worn below the top button on the uniform shirt, would ensure transparency in the working of the traffic policemen, a senior police official said.

The gadget would help in dealing better with motorists found guilty of violating traffic rules and also in probing complaints made against the traffic policemen, he said.

These sophisticated cameras are wearable audio-video or photographic recording devices, designed to address specific requirements related to law enforcement.

"The body worn cameras will make the police force technologically advanced and also ensure transparency in the working of the traffic cops," Beed Superintendent of Police (SP) G Shreedhar said.

At the same time, the police will also have a strong evidence, in the form of footage, against the erring motorists, he said.

It is expected that motorists would not try to err and get caught on the camera. Further, the instances of erring motorists arguing with the police are also likely to come down, the SP said.
In the first phase, he said, 10 such equipment have been given on an experimental basis to the traffic policemen in the central Maharashtra city.