he clock ticked 11.20 p.m. and the car carrying The Hindu team, which had hit the road to do a reality check on the security at the ubiquitous ATM counters in the city, took a turn to the left from Kacherippady.
The destination was Semitheri Mukku where robbery attempts at two unguarded ATMs on the night of June 23 by a migrant gang were foiled, thanks to the timely intervention of two youngsters. The drive through the relatively dark alley proved that nothing has changed. None of the nine ATMs, just a stone’s throw away from the ATMs near the Ayappan Kovil targeted by robbers, had security guards.
The situation was no different at the 102 ATMs, out of 450 ATMs within the city police limits, at major points across the city covered by The Hindu in a three-hour long drive starting from Vyttila Junction at 10.08 p.m. on Tuesday. In fact, only 11 ATMs had security guards with both nationalised and private banks equally at fault exposing serious chinks in the security cover for customers. Seven out of the 10 ATMs in the less than two-kilometre stretch on the NH-47 towards Alappuzha from the Vyttila Junction had no security guards. On the Vyttila-Kadavanthra stretch, just two out of the eight ATMs had security while one ATM of a new gen bank, tucked away inside a shopping complex away from the public sight, posed grave danger in the night.
The situation was only marginally better in the posh residential area of Panampilly Nagar where three out of the six ATMs had security guards. The lone police patrol team witnessed during the late night assignment passed us here near the Avenue Centre.
The Valanjambalam-Ravipuram-Pallimukku stretch was worse off where just two out of the 16 ATMs had guards. Equally worse was the stretch from Woodlands Junction to Madhava Pharmacy on MG Road where users were on their own at 10 out of the 11 ATMs.
Neither 22 out of the 30 ATMs between Kacherippady-Mamangalam-Palarivattom Bypass nor seven in the Vyttila-Pettah stretch offered any security solace to customers forced to withdraw cash in the night.
A meeting of banks was convened in 2013 and notices were served on the guidelines to ensure security of ATM users, says the City Police Commissioner.
