Custody torture of Army officer turns spotlight on police stations sans CCTV cameras in Odisha

BHUBANESWAR: Odisha police have decided to conduct a comprehensive audit of all police stations across Odisha to check availability and functioning of CCTV cameras. The move comes in the wake of alleged police brutality on an Army officer and molestation of his fiancée, at Bharatpur police station, which does not have any CCTV camera. Sources said at least 88 police stations in Odisha do not have CCTV cameras.
Built over an acre of land at an estimated cost of Rs 4.5 crore, the three-storey Bharatpur police station was inaugurated on March 11 this year.Though the building has been designed with cutting-edge smart solutions and infrastructure, the station, surprisingly, is not equipped with CCTV cameras.
State Crime Branch, which is probing the delicate case stated that their investigation to gather evidence would face an impediment in the absence of CCTV cameras at Bharatpur police station.
“There was some issue with a vendor, who has delayed the process of installation of cameras at Bharatpur police station. The CCTV cameras will be installed soon. We will also ensure that all police stations in the state are equipped with CCTV cameras,” DGP Y B Khurania told TOI.
In April 2021, the Supreme Court directed all states to cover police stations with CCTV camera surveillance. The objective was to prevent any wrongdoing on the premises of the police stations and build more confidence among citizens about law enforcing agencies besides ensuring transparency in policing system.
According to the official data released by the Bureau of Police Research and Development, 591 police stations out of 679 in Odisha were covered by 11,887 CCTV cameras as on Jan 1, 2023. These included 362 stations in rural areas, 162 in urban areas and 67 special purpose police stations located in urban and semi-urban areas.
Experts said many police stations in the state either do not have cameras or have sub-standard ones. “We have been coming across cases related to custody tortures where police failed to produce CCTV footage. Cops came up with pleas like defunct cameras or poor quality of visuals captured by the cameras,” senior lawyer Sidharth Das said.
According to retired DSP S K Swain, all police stations should be equipped with AI-enabled cameras for effective monitoring by SPs and higher officials, including the DGP. “A command centre should be set up at the DGP office.
“Cameras of good quality should be installed at the entry and exit points, main gates of the police stations, lock-ups, corridors, reception areas, inspector’s room, other rooms where cops sit, areas outside the lock-ups, in front of police station compound, outside washrooms/toilets, duty officers’ rooms and back part of police stations,” Swain said.