Police booked as many as 1.94 lakh cases in the State during 2020, and 1,551 cyberbullying sheets were opened against those who were harassing women through different apps, according to Director-General of Police (DGP) D. Gautam Sawang.
“Despite several challenges in 2020, the AP Police has surged ahead by facing COVID-19, which was never seen. Though there was no SOP and unaware of the roots of coronavirus, police worked hard and there were 109 COVID martyrs in Police Department. Change and transformation is the hallmark of the police who won 108 national awards this year which was a feather in the cap of the State police,” Mr. Sawang said while giving the crime data and the highlights of the Police Department at a press conference at the AP Police Headquarters on Wednesday.
The DGP said the police registered about 1.94 lakh cases (up to November) and cognizable crimes reduced by 15% when compared to 2019.
Of the total cases, 69,688 were booked by the Special Enforcement Bureau (SEB), a new wing created by the government with Excise and Police departments in May this year. The SEB personnel arrested 89,000 persons, of them 211 were from various State and Central government departments.
Safety of women
With regard to the safety of women and children, the Cyber Crime police opened cyberbullying sheets against 1,551 stalkers in the State. Under AP Disha Bill, 89 sexual assault (rape) and 256 sexual offence cases were charge sheeted within seven days and 377 ‘Zero FIRs’ were registered. Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy would soon launch special investigation vehicles, the DGP said.
Andhra Pradesh stood top in rescuing victims and arresting traffickers under Anti-Human Trafficking drive. In all, 322 victims were rescued and 609 traffickers were arrested. Guntur (Urban), Visakhapatnam City and West Godavari stood top in trafficking cases.
This year, 25,298 children, including 4,280 girls, of different States were rescued under Operation Muskaan.
The Finger Prints Bureau (FPB) was in first place in the country by collecting 9,51,437 finger print records, and there were 49,710 unsolved chance prints in its database. Automated finger and palm print identification system gives accurate results with high matching speed in 10 to 15 seconds, Mr. Sawang explained.
First of its kind
The AP Police Seva App, which has more than 50 features, was the first of its kind in India. About 1,14,581 FIRs were downloaded in less than three months, details of 5,234 missing persons were searched, people searched for 4,876 unknown bodies and family members searched for 7,654 persons on arrest information through the app.
By using technology, investigation in 88% of cases were completed and the conviction rate was 64% till date in 2020. The accused were convicted in 23 cases through the evidence collected from Body Worn Cameras (BWC), 130 cases through Locked House Monitoring System (LHMS) and 3,200 offenders were convicted through CCTVs.
There was a rise in Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, cases in 2020. Police registered 1,598 POCSO Act cases (minor rape cases), which were 1,386 in 2019. As many as 21, 827 cases were registered on the basis of the petitions received under ‘Spandana’, of which 99% were disposed within seven days, the DGP said.
A complaints cell with toll free number would be launched soon for better transparency and accountability. The cell would be linked to the AP Police Headquarters and monitored by the DGP directly, Mr. Sawang added.
Additional DGP (Law and Order) Ravi shankar Ayyanar and senior police officers of different wings were present.