Bicycle stolen from PBS docking station in Unkal

Hubballi: A bicycle of Savari, the Public Bicycle System (PBS) parked in the docking station at Unkal, was stolen in the early hours Saturday. The thief is caught on CCTV which shows him breaking open the smart lock and taking away the bicycle.
The man had stolen the bicycle taking advantage of darknes around 4.20am on Saturday. However, it was found at a hotel later in the day, thanks to the GPS tracker fitted to it. Police, who were on night rounds, are said to have recovered the bicycle from the thief and parked it in the hotel near Unkal Lake.
Mahesh Kapase, project manager for Savari managed by Trinity Technologies and Software Solutions Pvt Ltd under the Smart City Project, said the bicycle theft incident came to light on Sunday morning.
On the occasion of Rangpanchami on Saturday, the PBS station was kept closed with all the bicycles parked there. “When we started checking all the docking stations on Sunday morning, we realised that one cycle (numbered 183) was missing from the Unkal docking station. We rushed to the station and checked the CCTV, which revealed the theft,” he said, and explained how the thief walked away with the bicycle by breaking open the smart lock.
“At 8.30am on Sunday, we tracked down the cycle to a hotel near Unkal Lake with the help of GPS. The security personnel at the hotel said policemen have kept the bicycle there,” he said.
They called the policemen from the number they got from the hotel security and got to know that the cops were attached to Vidyanagar police station. Kapasi was told to come to the station on Monday to complete the formalities to get the Savari bicycle back. They were busy with the security arrangements in the wake of PM Narendra Modi’s visit to the district on Sunday.
“I have already forwarded the video clips and other details to police officials in Vidyanagar station. I will file a complaint on Monday morning,” Kapase added.