Scaling up their resources with the latest technological advancements, the Kurnool District Police have integrated their vast network of closed-circuit cameras (CCTV) in the region to a centralised location.
The feed from nearly 1,500 surveillance cameras in Kurnool, Nandyal and Adoni mandals, which was earlier confined to their respective control rooms, can now be viewed from a recently unveiled state-of-the-art Command and Control Centre at the district headquarters. This new addition, including a 3x3 video wall with 9 smart televisions, is expected to strengthen the efforts of the department, already striving for prevention of crime with 22 dedicated technological wings.
Kurnool Superintendent of Police Gopinath Jatti, during his tenure as Tirupati Urban Superintendent of Police, was instrumental in setting up a similar facility in the temple city.
Speaking to The Hindu , Mr. Jatti asserted that the facility would not only help in maintaining law and order but also assure the people that department is concerned about their safety. “We have already established our presence in the department’s social media accounts on Facebook and WhatsApp, regularly responding to people’s problems and spreading awareness on the prevailing issues. Now, we are focusing on augmenting our security and surveillance measures, and are also focusing on networking the existing CCTV cameras in all the mandal headquarters,” he added.
Recalling a recent incident, where six of a family were killed in a road accident near Alur mandal, Mr. Jatti said that they could nab the offender only after reviewing the CCTV footage. The facility, being operated in coordination with Kurnool Municipal Corporation (KMC), is also expected to equip the latter with smart monitoring of sanitation workers (during the morning shift), streamlining of traffic and parking spaces and much more.
Cyber lab
KMC Commissioner C.B. Harinath Reddy said that the Command and Control Centre was one of the major milestones in the history of the district, adding that they would also integrate all the remaining CCTV cameras in the city.
Mr. Jatti said that they would soon establish a dedicated ‘cyber lab’ to tackle technology-related offences.
The Command and Control Centre is at the II Town Police Station and has been implemented with CSR funds.
