Most CWG lights, boards stolen

Theft of street bulbs and signboards has become a recurring problem for the New Delhi Municipal Council ( NDMC), especially in areas beautified during the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

Drive along the Mother Crescent Road and one will notice many streetlight poles without any bulbs. Same is the case with the lion and hutment structures installed by NDMC during the CWG as only two or three out of a dozen put up on the high security road remain now.

Most miscreants are minors and fall under the age group of 12- 14. Therefore, the police has no option but to let them off with a warning.

Besides Mother Crescent Road, Baba Kharak Singh Marg and Janpath, which were especially taken up for NDMC’s beautification and streetscaping work, have recently been witnessing a rise in the incidents of such thefts.

However, the problem is not confined in these areas. According to NDMC officials, places in proximity with jhuggies such as Vinay Marg, Aurobindo Marg, Moti Bagh area too witness such incidents where the thieves steal bulbs and sign boards to sell them in the black market. NDMC engineer V. K. Pandey said, “Over a 1,000 FIRs have been filed in this regard under various police stations. The agency has to face daily losses due to these anti- social activities. And since we can’t leave the area in dark, we immediately install new lights.”

Another official informed that most miscreants caught are minors and fall under the age group of 12- 14. Therefore, the police has no option but to let them off with a warning, Mr Pandey said. The police has tried to “lecture them” in front of family members and neighbours but in vain. “We are perplexed as there is no permanent solution to this problem. The police has also not been able to stop these thefts. Besides raising questions on the law and order of the area, it causes us huge losses as we have to install new lights almost daily,” said the official.