Every mobile will now turn into an eye to catch motorists who violate traffic norms.
The city police on Thursday re-launched Public Eye as a mobile phone application enabling members of the general public to be “citizen police” and help ensure motorists maintain road discipline.
With the launch of the app, road users can keep an eye on each other, note traffic violations and inform the traffic police.
“Our aim is to bring more discipline among road users and ensure rules are being followed, which we hope will reduce the number of accidents,” said M.A. Saleem, Additional Commissioner of Police.
The city police had launched the app three years ago, but it was not effective due to technical glitches. “The city police received only 28,908 complaints in the last three years, which is not up to the mark," he said. A majority of the complaints were rejected due to inadequate information or evidence.
The new app has been developed by Janagraha, a city-based NGO. Swathi Ramanatha, co-founder, Janagraha said, “A user can “Aim, Click and Send” without much hassle. The only criterion is that the registration number of the offending vehicle should be visible.” Police Commissioner N.S. Megharikh, who launched the app, said that most fatal accidents involve two-wheelers.
“Bikers lack traffic sense, endangering the lives of others too. This app could help instil more discipline among motorists,” he said.
Though social media has been used to report many crimes, it has not helped solve a single case, police claim.
“Going by the records, the city police have not solved even a single case using information on social media,” Police Commissioner N.S. Megharik said.
There are over 56 lakh vehicles in the city, which translates into a ratio of one policeman for every 5,000 vehicles
