Burglars strike every 48 hours in Gomtinagar

LUCKNOW: It is not just incidents of carlifting that have tainted Gomtinagar. The locality is also becoming a hub of burglaries.
From January 1 to June 10, 83 burglaries have taken place in parts of Gomtinagar, an increase of 30% in comparison to last year in the same period. In comparison to 2017, the increase is of 35%.

This year’s record means burglars are targeting a house in the locality every 48 hours.
Of all the burglaries, only 35 have been solved by the police. The residents have blamed lack of patrolling and police presence for the spurt in the crime.
Most recently, on June 10, unidentified miscreants targeted the house of businessman Shivam Upadhayay in Vijay Khand-II. He had left the city on June 8 and the house was locked.
On the morning of June 11, Upadhayay returned to see his house broken into and valuables missing. The case is under investigation.
It is not only independent houses that have become the target. In apartments, 11 robberies have taken place in the past six months. Many Gomtinagar residents have even shifted out because of the thefts.
In an incident on May 31, reported from Gomtinagar Extension, Vikas Chaturvedi’s apartment was burgled. Robbers made off with cash and jewellery worth lakhs after breaking into the house, said Chaturvedi, who works at an MNC. His neighbour Atul Singh had informed the police of the burglary.
Circle officer of Gomtinagar Avnishwar Chand Srivastava told TOI that he had received Upadhayay’s complaint about some items being stolen. However, he said that no complaint about Chaturvedi’s house had reached them.
Srivastava also defended the police saying the burglaries in Gomtinagar had taken place in houses which were locked for days. He also blamed unfit and old security guards deployed by apartments for the spurt in crime.
An officer in the crime branch also recalled that in 2012, a gang was busted for paying money to domestic workers for information about residents leaving their homes locked for long durations.
Residents, meanwhile, say that no precaution is taken by police.
Banker Suresh Sahu, who lives in an apartment block near Ambedkar crossing, said that no police patrolling ever takes place in his area despite bureaucrats, ministers and other officials living there.
Retired government officer in Viram Khand AK Das said that tall claims by police about installing CCTV cameras at every crossing was mere pep talk.
Anjali Dubey, who runs a beauty parlour in Gomtinagar Extension, said, “We wake up daily to find a case of theft reported from our area. Two of my relatives have shifted to Mahanagar because of this.”
In some places, residents are taking their own initiatives to prevent burglaries. At Mandi Parishad Enclave in Vibhuti Khand, where a burglary had taken place in the house of Santosh Yadav, secretary of Mandi Parishad, the security system has been overhauled.
Guards have been deployed at the main gate of the colony after several complaints about laxity in security.
(With inputs from Aditya Shukla & Simran Mishra)