ADB to give Rs 14 crore to KMC for traffic and safety management in city

Kolkata: Satisfied with all-round development work by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) in the city, Asian Development Bank will be providing a grant of Rs 14 crore for traffic and safety management.

Mayor Sovan Chatterjee expressed his optimism that the safety and security aspect in Kolkata will witness a sea change as the city cops will be utilising the funds for bringing every nook and corner under CCTV surveillance.

"I have asked Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajiv Kumar to immediately prepare a Detailed Project Report (DPR) as the city police is the nodal agency who will be implementing the project related to security safety app. ADB will soon allocate funds and the remaining will be given after we present the DPR," Chatterjee told reporters after the meeting.

It has been planned that the CCTVs installed in the city will be made wi-fi enabled and connected with the central server of the police headquarters in Lalbazar. "This will help in curbing and also enhance the quality of traffic management in the city," a senior KMC official said.

KMC had earlier held a meeting with some leading mobile service providers in the city and had pushed for wi-fi services in large parts of the city free of cost but the service providers had declined to go forward with the project citing paucity of funds. With the money now available from ADB, the KMC along with Kolkata Police will be able to fast track their project of Security Safety App.

"A person within the wi-fi

enabled area can directly send videos or stills from a

problematic area through this app and can be seen at the control room. This will help us to see the real time situation on our own and we will be able to plan quickly the strength that needs to be deployed in that area," an official of the Kolkata Police said.

Petty crimes like snatching often take place in the lanes and bylanes of the city. "We hope we will be able to put a leash on such activities if CCTVs are installed in strategic locations," the official added.