Burglars decamp with CCTV cams installed after Dinanagar attack

The border area has been witnessing increase in crime incidents. Owing to that, people living here are apprehensive of a terror attack from the Pakistan side. KARANBIR SINGH, border resident

TARNTARAN: The theft of surveillance cameras installed after the 2015 terror attack in Dinanagar and absence of police at checkpoints in Tarn Taran district has locals worried.

“Soon after the terror attack in Dinanagar, the police fixed CCTV cameras in the border belt. But as the time passed, the cameras were stolen by thieves,” says Amarjit Singh of Amarkot village.

The Tarn Taran police had installed the cameras at different chowks of the border area to keep a vigil on criminal activities.

The people of the border belt, however, claim to be living in fear as they say police have failed to provide security to them with most checkpoints lying deserted. They add that various checkposts near the Indo-Pak border lie deserted. “There are more than 30,000 people living in the border belt of the district, but it is a sad state of affairs that we can’t see any functional checkpoint in the area,” said Amarjit Singh Mehta of Khemkaran.

The district shares approximately 90 km border with Pakistan.

Another resident of border area Karanbir Singh said, “The border area has been witnessing increase in criminal incidents like theft, snatching, rubbery, murders. Owing to that, people living on the border are apprehensive of an anticipated terror attack from the Pakistan side.”

“There must be 24x7 active check points at the vulnerable points near to the border so that the fear among the people is curtailed,” he added.

A visit to the border area by this correspondent revealed that there was no police deployment from Khemkaran police station to the BSF’s base, four km from the zero line.

Speaking to Hindustan Times, senior superintendent of police (SSP) DS Mann said on Saturday, “I called a special meeting of SHOs and DSPs concerned and instructed them to seal all vulnerable points of the border area with effective check point.”

He added: “The full security of the border belt will be secured within two days.”