Oomachikulam sub-division of Madurai district police has earned the dubious distinction of recording the highest number of grave crimes between 2009 and 2012.
According to information made available under the Right to Information Act 2005,
Oomachikulam sub-division, comprising six police stations, topped the list with 465 registered cases.
The offences that were registered ranged from murder, dacoity and theft.
The data suggests that many police stations are severely understaffed, especially at the level of Inspector, Sub-Inspector and constable. The concept of in-charge appears to be in vogue in the police department.
Traffic management too is hamstrung by lack of personnel in many of the sub-divisions in the district.
Stolen property
With regard to recovery of stolen property, the figures are mixed.
For instance, Samayanallur sub-division, which has eight police stations in its jurisdiction, reported Rs 23.47 lakh worth properties stolen in 2009 and a recovery of Rs 10.21 lakh.
In 2010, the property loss was Rs 41.44 lakh and the recovery was Rs 27.33 lakh.
In 2011, property losses amounted to Rs 1.09 crore and a meagre Rs 25.50 lakh was recovered.
Similar was the trend in 2012 when the loss was Rs 1.19 crore and the police had managed to recover Rs 25 lakh worth goods.
The Melur sub-division recorded loss of property valued at around Rs 25 lakh and Rs 50 lakh each year between 2009 and 2012, while the recovery was at between Rs 14 lakh and Rs 24 lakh.
The Tirumangalam sub-division had 10 murder cases and 15 dacoities reported from Tirumangalam Town from 2009 to 2012.
The property lost was around Rs one crore while the police recovered goods worth around Rs 65 lakh.
The strength allocation for each station and sub-division was made at least over a decade ago, a senior officer noted.
A review based on the rise in population and other factors is overdue.
The Madurai district police have Samayanallur, Tirumangalam, Perayur, Usilampatti, Oomachikulam, Tiruparankundram and Melur sub-divisions.
