KARACHI: Expressing concern over organized terrorist activities in Karachi, particularly the recent car bomb attack near the airport, Pasban Democratic Party (PDP) Chairman Altaf Shakoor here Monday demanded of the government to accelerate the pace of work on much delayed Karachi Safe City project.
He said this crucial project after the delay of eight long years was started previous month with the government making payment of more than Rs3 billion to the National Radio & Telecommunication Corporation (NRTC) for its execution, with installation of 1,044 new surveillance cameras and upgrade of 256 old ones.
It is said that in the first phase, the Red Zone and airport corridor would be covered. Total 1,300 cameras would be installed in the first phase. Among these 1,300, 1,044 would be new and the rest 256 are the old ones which would be upgraded. These 1,300 cameras would be installed at 300 sites in districts South, East, Malir and Korangi.
Altaf Shakoor said that it needs that this project needs to be completed as soon as possible to make the megacity safer and more secure. He said the recent terrorist act near the Karachi airport has increased the urgency to complete this project as soon as possible.
He said as per the original plan with 12 megapixel cameras in place, the safe city system would help carry out digital forensic and image enhancement of the acquired data, facial recognition, automatic number plate recognition which is called ANPR, which will be integrated with national and criminal databases. The 1,300 cameras would be supported by “response force” on the ground moving on 23 vehicles across the designated areas.
Altaf Shakoor said that the surveillance cameras are important because they safeguard assets, deter crime, and supply actionable evidence when illegal events occur. In fact, the presence of security cameras makes potential perpetrators think twice and consider other targets.
He said that studies show that visible surveillance systems can reduce the likelihood of criminal activities by as much as two-thirds. People behave differently when they believe they’re being watched. Security cameras thereby create a psychological barrier that can turn an attractive target into a security stronghold.
He demanded from the government and the concerned project executing agency to increase speed of this crucial city security project and ensure its early completion. He said with the help of security cameras the movement of traffic flow could also be monitored in real time and issues of traffic jams due to encroachments on roads could be timely determined and resolved. He hoped that the government and security agencies would realise the importance of the safe city project for Karachi and ensure work in three shifts to complete it even before its schedule.