CVIRMS and AFIS: Tirupati’s New Tools To Track Criminals

Tirupati:The local police have rolled out the City Visitors Information and Record Management System, a digital platform aimed at enhancing public safety and preventing crime here.

The system records details of guests staying at hotels, lodges, guest houses and home stays using Aadhaar or other valid ID proofs. The data is linked with police records to trigger instant alerts if a person with a criminal history is detected.

SP Harshavardhan Raju said the system has covered 644 hotels and lodges, forming 75 per cent of the pilgrim city accommodations. Remaining establishments have been directed to submit visitor details. After Tirupati, the system would be extended to Srikalahasti.

“From now on, Aadhaar cards will be mandatory for registration. Plans are under way to introduce iris scans as an additional safety measure. The information would be accessible to relevant police stations and participating hotels. This platform would help curb anti-social activities, enable faster investigations and ensure real-time monitoring of suspicious individuals”, the SP said.

Apart from the hotels, 171 out of 212 home stays in Tirupati have been integrated into the system, streamlining visitor registration, check-ins, and check-outs while improving transparency and safety.

“The system helps prevent the use of fake IDs, sends instant alerts in case of suspicious individuals, facilitates seamless coordination between police and accommodations, and enhances safety for tourists,” SP Raju explained.

Meanwhile, the Tirupati police are also leveraging the Automated Fingerprint Identification system to track repeat offenders and solve cases in an effective manner. This digitally captures, stores and compares fingerprints, helping the police connect suspects to past crimes.

So far, 11,618 individuals moving in streets at odd hours have been identified, with fingerprints collected from 7,288 of them, aiding in the detection of multiple cases.

The SP said that during the recent Ganga Jatara celebrations, only one complaint was registered, but this was resolved within hours using the fingerprint database; and the stolen property was recovered. Between January 24 and July 30 this year, Tirupati recorded 638 theft cases, of which the culprits were identified in 333 cases.

This meant a slight rise in the detection rate to 52.19 per cent from 50.09 per cent in 2024. Property worth `6.97 crore was reported stolen, of which the recoveries were of `3.26 crore, meaning a 46.87 per cent success.