City Police Commissioner P. Sivanandi on Tuesday urged bankers across the city to step up vigil on their premises by installing surveillance cameras to ensure secured atmosphere for their customers.
He visited the branch premises of a bank on Oppanakkara Street where Prakash, an accountant of a metal firm, was robbed of Rs. 5 lakh on Monday morning.
Mr. Sivanandi said that the surveillance cameras had captured the image of a person walking away with the cash bag.
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With this evidence the police were confident of apprehending the accused within the next 48 to 72 hours.
Eye-opener
Mr. Sivanandi told The Hindu that the incident should be an eye-opener for the banks to enhance security systems and vigil both inside and outside the bank premises. The very presence of such systems would bring down the crime rate, he said.
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Mr. Sivanandi said that Deputy Commissioners of Police P. Nagarajan (Law and Order) and N. Kamini (Crime and Traffic) had been asked to speak to all banks through their Assistant Commissioners and Inspectors on the need for stepping up vigil in and around the bank premises.
All banks should have surveillance cameras in the public area as well as the staff area, besides cash safe vault room and safety locker areas in addition to a few outside the banks to see whether any gang indulged in planning. Such cameras would also help zeroing in on suspects even after committing the offences.
ATM kiosks
Similarly, not just for the safety of the cash but also for that of the customers visiting the bank, all ATM kiosks should be equipped with cameras, he said.
The police would sensitise the bankers to these issues and were confident of getting the co-operation of the bankers in bringing down the crime rate, Mr. Sivanandi said.