An alert Delhi Police and fear of the pandemic led to drop in crimes.
New Delhi: Delhi has witnessed a drop in the crime rate in the national capital amidst the pandemic when most people are choosing to stay indoors. According to the latest data from the Delhi Police, petty crimes like robbery, theft and burglary have seen a sharp drop of over 30% till 31 July this year compared to the same period last year.
The crime statistics of the Delhi Police says that 995 cases of robbery were registered between January to 31 July this year against 1,278 of such cases registered during the same period last year. Cases of theft and house theft have also dropped, and this year till 31 July, 1,155 cases of theft were reported, while 72,678 cases of other thefts was reported during the same period.
More than 1,600 cases of house thefts were reported during the same period and more than 1,01,000 cases of other thefts were reported in the national capital during the same period last year. Cases of burglary have also fallen compared to last year. A total of 1,125 cases of burglary were reported in the national capital between January and July this year, against 1,895 cases of burglary reported during the same period last year.
Sources in the Delhi Police said that a during the period of lockdown, cases of robbery and such other petty crimes were very low and this was due to the proactive action of the Delhi police and a strong presence of the police force on the ground.
“The Delhi Police had put up pickets across the entire city. The number of such crimes was more during the first few months of this year. From March to May, cases of robbery and theft were minimal. The PCR which received calls for theft and robbery to the tune of 500-600 each day, was just receiving less than 200 calls each day during the period of lockdown,” a senior Delhi Police officer told this correspondent.
Police sources said that cases saw a drop also because of the fear of the pandemic. People were even scared to commit crimes during the period of lockdown.
Eish Singhal, Delhi Police spokesperson and DCP New Delhi, told The Sunday Guardian, “The Delhi Police has been able to nab several of the groups involved in robbery, theft and other such petty crimes. We have used our sources to gather intelligence and pick them up. During the interrogation, we also got to know about other members involved in such crimes and during the last few months, several of such groups have been arrested. The Police Commissioner is very clear about controlling street crimes in Delhi and has also given strict orders to all police stations to deal with any such complaint strictly.”
However, cases of snatching have seen a slight increase in Delhi this year compared to last year. A total of 3,935 cases of snatching has been registered in Delhi between January and July this year, against 3,806 of such cases last year in the same period.
Singhal said that the rise in snatching cases in the crime statistics of Delhi is due to the registration of more complaints of snatching.
Crimes against women and heinous crimes like murder, rape and molestation have also seen a decline this year compared to last year, according to the crime statistics released by the Delhi Police.