While claiming that the Mumbai Police is number one in the country, home minister RR Patil announced on Tuesday that his department is contemplating additional force and technological facilities for key cities. These include Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Aurangabad and Nagpur.
He said that because the density of population in Mumbai was the highest in the country, the ratio of police and people was lower than Punjab and other key states. Patil added that even after the recruitment of 13,000 personnel this time, the force will not be able to match that of Punjab with respect to numbers. However, key cities in the state face different type of problems and need additional force to tackle them, he said.
Patil said that his force received 447 intelligence inputs in 2010. This year, 213 inputs have been received so far and the force has been alert enough to act on them, he said. “The force has time and again proved its mettle. Blasts in eight cities — Bangalore, Surat, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Delhi etc — were successfully detected by the Mumbai Police. It’s unfair to claim that the number of informants is dwindling. No census has been done,” he said.
He said that he will visit London, along with the officials, to study the CCTV network installed by the London metropolitan police. There are 13,172 CCTV cameras installed in Mumbai by private establishment; the hue and cry about the delay in installing more CCTVs was uncalled for, he said. Patil said the density of population in the city makes it difficult to keep total surveillance.
“Nearly 150 new hutments come up in the city every day. Huge uproar is created if the illegal hawkers are evacuated. This make effective policing difficult,” he added.
He was replying to the debate on the Mumbai blasts in the state assembly.
Gather intelligence on terror, not opposition: Khadse
Cornering the state government on lapses in security, the Opposition on Tuesday alleged that the government has engaged its intelligence department to gather information on its leaders.
Eknath Khadse, leader of the Opposition, produced government resolutions in the House to establish the claim.
“I know the government engages the intelligence department in tapping phones and other politically-motivated activities, but their priority must be terrorism-related intelligence,” Khadse said on the second day of the monsoon session.
Bhartiya Janata Party legislator Devendra Fadanvis blamed the delay in arms and ammunition procurement on corruption, vested interests and inefficiency on part of the police department. The Opposition moved the adjournment notice soon after the proceedings started on Tuesday.
Khadse demanded a discussion on the Mumbai blasts and the killing of warkaris in an accident in Jalna on Monday. The house was adjourned for 10 minutes amid uproar. Speaker Dilip Walse Patil then admitted the motion and allowed the discussion on the 13/7 blasts.
