Hindustan Times ST (Mumbai) - HT Navi Mumbai Live
Cops to monitor trends on social media, identify security threats
The lab will enhance proactive policing, provide the police with better intelligence
CBD BELAPUR: Navi Mumbai police have set up a social media lab at their police commissionerate office in CBD Belapur to track social media to gauge the sentiments of Navi Mumbaiites and to identify potential threats to security.
The lab was inaugurated on Thursday by additional commissioner of police Vijay Chavan in the presence of police commissioner Prabhat Ranjan.
The lab is manned by a 15-member team that has been trained for its specialised work. The team will work 24x7 in two shifts to collect relevant information from social media. Sawant said, “People today communicate with each other using mobile phones, telephone, internet forums and so on. It has been observed that the traditional sources of information sometimes do not give the correct picture about the society’s needs and misgivings.”
Giving an example, Sawant said, “There was a major law and
order problem in Delhi following the rape and murder of a medical student. There was an instant outburst of anger from young people, which initially occurred predominantly through social media.”
He said, “To have the feel of the
pulse of the citizens, their mood and their expectations from the police and government, it has become necessary to follow social media activities in the open public domain.”
He said, “It will also help us
gauge if anti-social or terror elements are trying to influence anyone or if someone is being brainwashed against the system or the government. It will help us take preventive action in time.”
Chavan said, “The lab has been established with the aim of keeping tabs on the sentiments prevalent on, and activities happening on the social media. The lab will enhance our proactive policing and provide us with better intelligence, because information spreads quickly on social media.”
Chavan said, “We aim to gather all the available knowledge about the aspirations of the public and issues needing immediate and long-term attention.”
Chavan said, “Equipped with this knowledge, Navi Mumbai police will prepare itself to enhance the safety and security of citizens.”