Defunct CCTVs will be functional soon

Ludhiana: Soon, all the non-functional CCTVs installed under the Smart City project are likely to start working. After a long wait of five years, the Ludhiana municipal corporation has approved the annual maintenance charge (AMC) to HFCL, the company that had won the bid. Since 2016 when 1,400 cameras were installed at 159 sites in the city, the HFCL has been repairing them free of cost. There was no provision of annual maintenance charges, so the cameras that got burnt or damaged could not be replaced.
Of the 1,400 CCTVs installed under the Smart City project, about 650 are functional. An official said, “In these five years, the company has been repairing the cameras and resolving technical issues at their own expenses. The cameras that got burnt or damaged were not replaced as the firm was not getting any maintenance charges. Recently, the Ludhiana Smart City Limited gave approval for the AMC.”
“The tender was approved in 2019, but due to Covid-19 outbreak, the work of floating tenders stopped. The tender has been passed and HFCL won the bid. This month, the work on non-functional cameras will be started,” said the official, adding that many non-functional cameras were where the constructions work was going, and these places included Sherpur Chowk, Dhandari, mini secretariat crossing, Bharat Nagar Chowk, Bhai Bala Chowk and Aarti Chowk.
Joint commissioner of police, city and traffic, J Elanchezhian said more cameras would be installed under the Smart City project soon, and 300 would be put up in the first phase.