Darjeeling gets CCTV cameras for security

DARJEELING IS ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR HILL STATIONS WITH MORE THAN 6.20 LAKH DOMESTIC AND ABOUT 50,000 FOREIGNERS VISITING IT IN 2016

Tourists visiting Darjeeling hills in West Bengal can do so feeling a bit safer as police have got more eyes to monitor crimes.

Darjeeling district police have installed 65 cameras in strategic locations in Darjeeling town including approach roads. The important locations of the entire district will come under video surveillance by the end of the month.

The blueprint is to install the cameras in such a way that no vehicle can enter, or leave, the hill town without being recorded by these cameras.

Darjeeling is one of the most popular hill stations in the country with more than 6.20 lakh domestic and about 50,000 foreign tourists visiting it in 2016. “The installation of cameras would make the place safer for tourists. The cameras will also help in controlling crime again women,” said Darjeeling district police super Amit P Javalgi. Vehicles fleeing after accidents can’t escape surveillance, he added.

However, the district police chief also added that Darjeeling is not a crime prone area. There have been few records of crime against tourists in many years, Javalgi told HT.

Theft of vehicles is a problem in the town and its surroundings.

Samrat Sanyal the president of Eastern Himalaya Travel and Tour Operators’ Association (EHTTOA) said “Though Darjeeling has always been safe for tourists the video surveillance will reassure their confidence.”

A sum of ₹40 lakh provided by West Bengal transport department has already been spent for the cameras. A proposal for more cameras has also been forwarded.

“We will put up signs in various places to make the public aware that they are under video surveillance,” said Javalgi. “The move is not to scare people, not to infringe in their privacy but to enhance and tighten the security of public,” he said.

The installation of CCTV cameras comes just before the hill station goes to municipal polls in mid May.

April and May is considered the peak tourist season in these parts.