BENGALURU: To ensure free and fair elections, the Southeast division police used a customised black Esteem car with four surveillance cameras in four directions on the top to monitor polling booths.
The initiative was taken by Deputy Commissioner of Police (South-east) Rohini Katoch Sepat and was designed by Marathahalli-based techie Santhosh Kumar. The car was designed keeping in mind the sensitive zones in the division. The four cameras fitted on the car’s roof streamed live footage from the polling booths to the mobile phones of police officers. The car did the rounds since Thursday and was most active on Saturday, the polling day.
Mr Santhosh Kumar told Deccan Chronicle, “DCP Sepat had asked me if we could find a solution for mobile surveillance during polling as it was humanly impossible for the police to be present everywhere. I designed the car keeping drones in mind, with cameras fitted in each direction. The only difference with the drones is that this one did not fly. The Digital Video Recorder is connected to a mobile phone through 4G internet connection. The car went around the city sending live footage to the Southeast division police control room. DCP Sepat and Madiwala inspector could see live images on their mobile phones.”
He said, “The car helped the police keep an eye in sensitive areas round the clock. A police constable from the crime department attached to HSR Layout was also in the car, constantly monitoring the video footage.” Mr Santhosh Kumar also developed an app to watch live streaming of the footage on mobile phones.
