CCTVS in schools and other proposals get Delhi cabinet nod
NEW DELHI: The Aam Aadmi Party government on Tuesday accorded administrative approval for installation of CCTV cameras in Delhi its schools, which had been sought by the Directorate of Education (DOE). The Delhi Cabinet meeting was held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
“In the wake of unfortunate incidents of child abuse in the schools of Delhi-ncr, it was decided that installation of CCTV cameras in all the schools run by Delhi government, local bodies or aided/recognized by them, will be mandatory,” said in Cabinet notes.
According to notes, the cameras shall mandatorily cover all classrooms, labs, corridors, parking, library, vacant rooms, areas outside washrooms and corner/inaccessible areas (except inside of washrooms).
In order to provide 360-degree coverage, it was necessary to design the CCTV system and CCTV surveillance installation as per specification needed for classrooms, corridors, open areas and entrance points. The IT Department was assigned the task of finalising the technical specifications.
Kejriwal also directed formation of a core-committee which, inter-alia, had to prepare a road-map, time-bound plan and oversee the functioning of the CCTV cameras.
The Cabinet also decided that the government will undertake a survey on infrastructural lacunae in Delhi-ncr, with a focus on women's safety. The survey will be conducted by the NGO Safetipin, which has the specialised skill set and prior experience.
According to a government spokesperson, Safetipin has already carried out mapping of dark stretches in Delhi with a focus on women's safety in 2015 and shared its findings with the Delhi government.
To assess the on-ground improvement, Safetipin would conduct a second round of audit. This process involves large-scale data collection of the city's streets and public spaces using two apps – namely, 'My Safetipin for crowd sourced data' and 'Safetipin Nite' to collect night time pictures of the city, the Cabinet was told during the meeting.
The Cabinet also approved the proposal to increase the financial assistance from Rs 1 lakh per acre to Rs 2 lakh per acre to the parks and the gardens registered with the Delhi Parks and Gardens Society.
It was further proposed to calculate financial assistance on a per acre basis and to do away with the item-wise bifurcation of financial assistance.
In addition, irrespective of the category of the colony, the Delhi Parks and Gardens Society will contribute 90 per cent of the admissible financial assistance at the rate of Rs 2 lakh per acre, while the balance 10 per cent will have to be borne by the concerned RWAS/NGOS.
Further, additional parks covering 5,000 acres would also be brought under the ambit of this scheme to provide additional financial assistance at enhanced rates.