The Tiruchirapalli City Corporation has accorded No-Objection Certificate (NOC) for setting up surveillance cameras in various places of the city.
It is said to be a major initiative of the Tiruchirapalli City Police to bring important thoroughfares under surveillance to prevent crime and keep an eye on the anti-social elements.
As per the plan, surveillance cameras will be established at 59 spots in Srirangam zone.
Twenty cameras will be set up from Main Guard Gate to Gandhi Market via Vellamandi Road and Marakkadai. Another 23 cameras will cover the stretch from St. Joseph’s College to Karur Bypass and Chathiram Bus Stand to Chinthamani Bazaar. Sixteen cameras will cover the area between Anna statue and N.S.B. Road.
An Erode-based company, which came forward to set up cameras, had sought permission from the civic body. The proposal was placed before the corporation council for ratification. Corporation Commissioner N.S. Prema told The Hindu on Tuesday that conditional permission had been granted for installing closed circuit television cameras. It would enhance the safety and security of citizens, pedestrians, shoppers, commuters, and so on. It would help the police regulate the crowd on important roads, streets, and shopping centres. Surveillance cameras had become an important aspect of smart city initiative. If a city was covered with surveillance cameras, it would gain points under the smart city plan, she said.
Meanwhile, a Coimbatore-based company has received permission for installing surveillance cameras at Central Bus Stand, Cantonment, Bharathidasan Road, Mutherayar statue junction, and a few other places. It has received the NOC from the corporation, the Commissioner of Police, and National Highways. Upon receiving NOC, District Collector K.S. Palanisamy, who was empowered to accord sanction, has granted final permission to the two companies to set up surveillance cameras.
A senior police officer said that installation of CCTVs had begun. The companies would bear the expenditure for setting up the cameras. They would put up digital advertisement boards to run the advertisement scroll and earn revenue to recover the cost of installing the CCTV cameras.
The task would be completed within a month, he added.
