As many as 186 cameras installed at traffic signals and public places have become defunct after the annual maintenance contract (AMC) expired on December 31, 2012.
After a long wait, the State Government and Police Headquarters sanctioned around Rs. 15 lakh for repairing the cameras and the work is likely to begin within a month. After the expiry of the AMC, the police with the help of the previous contractor managed to keep these cameras functional for a few months.
The cameras were installed in 2010 at a cost of around Rs 1.69 crore as part of the Aerial Traffic Control (ATC) system. The primary objective of installing the cameras was to help police personnel monitor the traffic flow at over 40 junctions and 110 major and minor roads across the city from the modern police control room.
In the absence of specific funding for the maintenance of these cameras and signals, police faced a challenge in keeping the system alive. However, they managed to keep the signals alive for some time with the help of sponsors in lieu of advertisement mileage. The police later decided to approach the Government for bringing in a permanent solution. Based on the report from Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) T.K. Rajasekaran, City Police Commissioner A.K. Viswanathan wrote to the Police headquarters seeking allocation of funds. Based on the norm that ten per cent of the installation cost will be given as fee for AMC, the police sought around Rs. 15 lakh and the same has been sanctioned from road safety fund and funds are expected to reach any time, Mr.Viswanathan said.
