Shillong, Oct 16: Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma announced a two-phase plan to enhance security in Meghalaya through the installation of CCTV cameras and establishment of local command centres.

“48 localities have been contacted and implementation started of which seven have been completed and another 40 localities will be wired and CCTVs will be active in about 60 days times,” Sangma told reporters after chairing a consultative meeting with various stakeholders, including rangbah shnongs, faith-based organizations etc to discuss ways to improve safety and security of women and children in Shillong and the state as a whole.

Stating that there will be two phases of implementation, the chief minister said the first phase involves installing CCTV cameras in localities and setting up local command centres that will be controlled by headmen and dorbar.

The Shillong Municipal Board has identified 47 locations for CCTV installation, with each locality having three to five locations.

“Work has already started, and seven locations have been completed, with 40 more to be finished by November or December,” he added.

In the second phase, the CM said the CCTV control rooms will be connected to the Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) at New Shillong.

“These will be having sub-command centres which will be at the access and available of the local headmen and dorbar and the next phase they will be further connected to the ICCC at New Shillong,” he said adding “We will start with urban areas like Shillong, Tura and Jowai and then to the district headquarters and further to the sub-division and slowly we hope we will be able to cover as many locations as possible.”

“As we moved forwards after discussions with the schools and localities and areas wherever we feel is necessary we will be happy to take this forward because I think this will give a good sense of security and safety to all the people,” Sangma added further.

The meeting highlighted the government’s concern over the recent surge in incidents, despite an overall decline in numbers.

“Though at a large scale we have seen there has been some decline in the numbers but the frequency with which some incidents happened in the last few weeks and months is a matter of concern for us as a government. As a government, we would like to be serious about it and we would like to ensure that we take steps to see how we could reduce incidents and how society, rangbah shnongs, organizations and the government can work together to be able to achieve that goal,” the CM said.

He informed that the government has also taken note of various suggestions that include establishment of more counselling centres and deployment of counsellors to support youngsters, large-scale publicity and awareness campaigns on issues related to youth and children and improvement of streetlights in areas where necessary.

The Chief Minister appealed to citizens to be cautious of false news and information on social media, emphasizing the importance of verifying information before reacting. He also urged citizens to trust local leadership, dorbar, and police in handling situations.

“I appeal to the citizens that before we react we should confirmed any kind of information and not take the law in their own hands and whenever situation happens we must trust our local leadership, local dorbar, rangbah shnongs and inform the police about this information so that police can take the right step and that is the right step to go forward,” he stated.

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