Surveillance on the Rise: Small Cities in India Embracing CCTV Security

Situated along the Chennai-Bengaluru Highway, Melvisharam has been an accident-prone area. Authorities have installed high-resolution cameras to enhance road safety, analyze road accidents, and prevent criminal activities.

This is among the many such uses of “Closed-Circuit Television” (CCTV) surveillance systems beyond major metropolises in India.

The “Status of Policing in India Report 2023” by advocacy group Common Cause found that 46% of respondents reported noticing surveillance coverage in mid-sized & small cities. In Cuttack, locals have voluntarily installed CCTVs to integrate with the city’s police control system. Similarly, in Indore, residents are using the app CitizenCOP to share CCTV footage to aid crime investigations. Human-animal conflicts have been a recurring concern in forest fringe areas of Coimbatore, and to mitigate such risks, AI-based CCTVs have been installed to monitor elephant pathways.

In UP, ‘Operation Trinetra’ helped solve 295 crimes using CCTV surveillance. However, Indian cities with high rates of surveillance do not necessarily have lower crime indices, according to The Wire.

Despite having more CCTV cameras, Chennai (40.87) has a similar crime index score to Kochi (41.12), which has far fewer cameras. The maintenance cost of CCTV systems is another challenge. In Ahmedabad, the average annual operational cost is INR 10 crore, likely doubling after upgrades. For a maintenance contract of 3 years, it is going to cost Ahmedabad MC 53 crores.

The exponential rise of surveillance and the associated risk of privacy violations are also concerning. The lack of clear guidelines for installing CCTV cameras in public places creates confusion and leaves room for potential misuse.

With the increasing accessibility to CCTV, incidents of data security breaches & sale of footage for financial gain are on the rise.

It is crucial for cities to ensure that CCTV surveillance serves public safety interests without infringing on personal privacy.

Has your city government installed CCTV cameras in public places? Has it resolved any security concerns in your city?