Police step up canal patrolling in western Tamil Nadu after elderly couple's murder
COIMBATORE: Following the murder of an elderly couple living alone in a farmhouse in Erode district recently, the state police department has increased the patrolling units along irrigation canals, as suspects are believed to be using such channels passing through farmland to reach their target.
Covering the districts of Tiruppur, Erode, and Coimbatore, which rely on major irrigation projects such as the Parambikulam Aliyar Project (PAP), Lower Bhavani Project (LBP), and Noyyal River irrigation channels, the police have increased their canal-based patrolling units from 39 to 82.
Due to the high number of isolated farmhouses in these western districts and purportedly similar methods (intruding into their target house using the canal route) deployed in previous crimes, the police are zeroing in on the rural areas of Erode, Tiruppur, and Coimbatore, all of which fall under the Coimbatore Range in the West Zone.
'A number of farmlands are linked to these three major irrigation projects, and the water distribution canals passing through them could have been used by the burglars to reach their target. To address this, we had initiated canal-based beat patrolling in Erode and Tiruppur districts four months ago and established teams in Coimbatore as preventive measures.
The patrol teams concentrate on routes along the irrigation networks. Following the recent double murder in Erode, we have doubled the personnel in these patrol teams,' said a senior police officer from the range.
According to police sources, Tiruppur district, which has approximately 80 km of irrigation network, has seen its beat patrolling units grow from 23 to 35.
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Police step up canal patrolling in western Tamil Nadu after elderly couple's murder
COIMBATORE: Following the murder of an elderly couple living alone in a farmhouse in Erode district recently, the state police department has increased the patrolling units along irrigation canals, as suspects are believed to be using such channels passing through farmland to reach their target. Covering the districts of Tiruppur, Erode, and Coimbatore, which rely on major irrigation projects such as the Parambikulam Aliyar Project (PAP), Lower Bhavani Project (LBP), and Noyyal River irrigation channels, the police have increased their canal-based patrolling units from 39 to 82. Due to the high number of isolated farmhouses in these western districts and purportedly similar methods (intruding into their target house using the canal route) deployed in previous crimes, the police are zeroing in on the rural areas of Erode, Tiruppur, and Coimbatore, all of which fall under the Coimbatore Range in the West Zone. 'A number of farmlands are linked to these three major irrigation projects, and the water distribution canals passing through them could have been used by the burglars to reach their target. To address this, we had initiated canal-based beat patrolling in Erode and Tiruppur districts four months ago and established teams in Coimbatore as preventive measures. The patrol teams concentrate on routes along the irrigation networks. Following the recent double murder in Erode, we have doubled the personnel in these patrol teams,' said a senior police officer from the range. According to police sources, Tiruppur district, which has approximately 80 km of irrigation network, has seen its beat patrolling units grow from 23 to 35.
