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Delhi

'1,000 govt schools to get 1.46 lakh CCTVs in six months'

NEW DELHI: As many as 1.46 lakh CCTV cameras will be installed in over 1,000 Delhi government schools within six months, at an estimated cost of Rs 597 crore, Delhi Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Satyendar Jain said here on Wednesday.
The CCTVs will be installed in classrooms and open areas, except bathrooms, the minister said, adding that a tender has been floated and seven companies have participated in the bidding process.
Jain elaborated that the 1.46 lakh closed-circuit televisions (CCTVs) will be installed in 1,028 city schools.
He said that the CCTV footage will be stored in each school and automatically erased after 30 days, and that parents will be issued an ID and password to view the footage whenever they wish to.
"We will start the work as soon as possible. The target of finishing this project was within a year, but we have decided to finish it within six months," said the minister.
Jain clarified that there will be two different types of cameras in the schools.
"At the entrance, we will keep cameras which can zoom in and out, to keep tab of every development. In the classes, normal cameras will be present."
He also explained that the total cost for these cameras includes the maintenance cost, execution of the project cost and high-speed internet cost.
"Of the total cost (Rs 597.51 crore) of the project, Rs 384.85 crore is for its execution, while Rs 57.69 crore will be set aside for maintenance for five years. Also, Rs 154.97 crore is for Internet connection charges for lease line for five years," Jain elaborated.
He added that "high-speed Internet connection of appropriate bandwidth will also be provided to school through internet service provider."
"We will also keep a check on the condition of the cameras and if there are any technical glitches then the department will immediately solve the issue," said Jain.
Earlier this year, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had announced that parents of students in Delhi government schools will have real-time access to CCTV footage of their child's classrooms on their mobile phones.
In September last year, the Directorate of Education had announced that it was planning to install CCTV in all classrooms of the government schools.
The decision came following the rape of a five-year-old girl at a school in east Delhi and the killing of a boy at a private school in Gurugram.
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