Delhi | Only 32 CCTVs in Shahdara functional: RTI

Delhi: The national capital continues to grapple with violent and property-related crimes, despite the widespread installation of surveillance cameras. While the overall crime rate in Delhi has reduced by 17.24%, the number of murders and other heinous offences has shown no decline.

The Shahdara district mirrors this larger pattern. According to Delhi Police data, there was a 22.3% drop in reported criminal cases across eight of the city’s 15 police districts in the first three months of 2024 compared to the same period last year. This includes both heinous and non-heinous crimes. From January to March 2024, 35,074 cases were recorded, down from 45,155 cases in the corresponding period of 2023.

Shahdara’s spectre of crime

In Shahdara, however, crimes have increased slightly—by 2.24%. The case resolution rate has improved significantly. The Central district topped the list with a 57% resolution rate, followed by Shahdara at 53%, up from 30% last year. Other districts also saw gains: East (32%, up from 18%), North-east (40%, up from 28%), Rohini (39%, up from 34%), Outer North (47%, up from 44%), and North (42%, up from 38%). In contrast, the North-west district, despite a drop in total crimes, experienced a decline in resolution rate—from 42% to 35%.

Automobile thefts in Shahdara have shown a sharp increase. As of June 30, 2025, five such thefts have been registered, marking a 60% rise compared to the same period in 2024, according to data from the Zonal Integrated Police Network.

The number of seized vehicles—many suspected to be stolen—has also risen. Police data shows 5,912 seized vehicles in 2025, compared to 5,214 during the same period last year, a jump of 11.8%.

Also read: Delhi’s ‘Safe City’ drive: Thousands of CCTV cameras defunct

Crimes rise, number of CCTVs remains unchanged

Despite the rise in crime, surveillance infrastructure in Shahdara remains severely inadequate. An RTI reply to Patriot revealed that of the 1,558 CCTV cameras installed in the district, only 32 are currently operational.

According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Prashant uGautam, the non-functional cameras were installed under the Safe City project. “The actual fact is that every district has been given a quantifiable amount of CCTVs through the Safe City project. None of these are working because we do not have adequate training capabilities for the newer CCTV cameras,” he said. “By default, the ones that are functional now are the cameras that we had set up ourselves through our police personnel and not through the headquarter.”

Murder, robbery, and shooting incidents

On June 27, a 19-year-old boy named Yash was fatally stabbed in the Rani Garden area of Shahdara. According to police, the stabbing stemmed from a minor altercation between Yash and a man named Amaan. The attack occurred near Ambedkar Park, close to Shiv Mandir, when Yash had gone to collect his cousin, Aman Sharma. Three individuals have been apprehended in the case—Amaan, Lucky, and a minor.

In May, two men who went on an armed robbery spree in Shahdara were arrested after allegedly spending part of their loot at a nightclub. The duo is accused of carrying out two robberies at gunpoint—one near a metro station and another near a railway underpass—stealing nearly Rs 4.5 lakh in total. They reportedly spent Rs 80,000 on clubbing before being tracked and arrested in Uttar Pradesh.

The first robbery took place on May 21. A telecom company agent was ambushed near East Azad Nagar Metro Station while heading to deposit Rs 1.16 lakh collected from SIM retailers. Two helmeted assailants on a motorbike confronted him, and one of them brandished a pistol before snatching a bag containing the cash and fleeing the scene.

The next day, the same suspects allegedly targeted a second victim—an employee of a local shop who was returning from Jhilmil Industrial Area after collecting Rs 3.34 lakh. He was attacked near a temple in Shahdara. “The robbers grabbed his collar, knocked him to the ground, and made off with his scooter, which contained the cash and some documents,” said Gautam.

Another shocking crime occurred on April 14. Police discovered the body of a woman with two gunshot wounds lying by the roadside. CCTV footage showed her in conversation with a man named Rizwan. Their exchange escalated into a heated argument, after which Rizwan pulled out a weapon and shot her before fleeing.

Initially, Rizwan told police he had acted out of an “obsession” after meeting the woman two months earlier on Instagram. “He said he saw her with another man and warned her to end that friendship. They frequently argued over it,” said Additional Commissioner of Police (Crime) Sanjay Kumar Sain. Rizwan allegedly procured a country-made pistol two days before the murder and arranged to meet the woman at Kodia Colony. When she refused to end the friendship, he shot her.

However, further interrogation revealed a deeper motive. Gautam stated that the woman had been a key witness in the murder of Rahul Kumar, who was killed four months earlier in Sunder Nagri after intervening in a street altercation involving the woman. Her statement had already been recorded before a magistrate.

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Safe City project still in limbo

At present, the Delhi Police is still working to fully implement the Safe City project. While 10,000 CCTV cameras have been promised under the initiative, their deployment and operationalisation remain stalled due to gaps in training and technical integration.