Mumbai, Feb 15 (PTI) In a bid to effectively curb crimes against women and children, the Mumbai Police has prepared records of molesters, sexual offenders against children, rapists and other such criminals, a senior officer said on Tuesday.

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Speaking to reporters after the publication of the 'Annual Crime Report 2021', Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Vishwas Nangre Patil listed various measures to check crime against women.

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"Earlier we used to prepare records of dacoits, burglars, robbers, vehicle thieves etc. Now, we have created records of molesters, sexual offenders against children, rapists and of those involved in crimes against women," he said.

In many cases, police have initiated the process of externing such criminals en masse. The decision on externing such criminals is taken by zonal DCPs, Nangre Patil said.

Among other measures, Mumbai Police have set up Nirbhaya squads to ensure the safety of women.

A proposal is submitted to the Maharashtra government to set up a Nirbhaya Sahayata Kendra or assistance centre for women at each police station in the state.

"Under this proposal, each police station will get Rs 7 lakh for Nirbharaya Sahaayata Kendra, Rs 12 lakh for zonal level centres and Rs 30 lakh for 13 regional-level counselling centres (to be operated) with the help of the Women and Child Welfare Department, TISS and private organisations," Nangre Patil said.

He said the police will try to sensitise people and spread awareness about the crimes against women.

"We will counsel the victims and also the first-time offenders," he said.

Among other measures, police have mapped the patrolling plan and routes. "Each police station has at least 50 to 60 QR codes for patrolling. We are getting good results," Nangre Patil said.

Queried on the number of police stations where CCTV cameras have been installed following the Bombay high court order, he said the tendering process is on.

"The DGP office will take a call on installing CCTV cameras at every police station across the state," Nangre Patil added.

Under the 'Safe City'' project, the state government has installed 5,318 cameras. In the second phase, 5,530 cameras will be installed soon, he said.

Speaking earlier at this event, Mumbai Police Commissioner Hemant Nagrale had said that incidents of crime against women stood at 5,496 last year, up from 4,539 in the year before that.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)