Tirunelveli City Police install ANPR cameras on vital roads to monitor movement of habitual offenders

The Hindu

17-05-2025

The Tirunelveli City Police have installed Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras at five check-posts on major roads that lead into the city from different directions in a bid to monitor the movement of history-sheeters and other offenders.
Even though the police have already fitted ordinary CCTV cameras at the check-posts, the installation of ANPR cameras at these spots gives an upper hand to the investigators in pursuing the criminals fleeing in vehicles after committing the crime.
These cameras have been installed in check-posts at Karungulam near Melapalayam on Palayamkottai – Papanasam Highway, KTC Nagar on Palayamkottai – Thoothukudi 4-lane National Highway, Subburaj Mills check-post at Thatchanallur near Pettai ITI and the check-post at Pettai on Tirunelveli – Tenkasi highway.
These hi-tech cameras can record and transmit to the nearest control room the registration number of the vehicles crossing the check-posts even in pitch darkness as the ANPR cameras have been equipped with infrared rays.
Sources in the police said that rowdies belonging to a particular caste had been planning to kill any important person from their rival caste in a bid to take revenge for the murder of a contract killer from their caste a year ago in Palayamkottai.
'After the ANPR cameras were fitted, we could track the movement of suspicious vehicles in which they were travelling and we've so far nabbed eight of them while the hunt is on to detain 18 more. So, these cameras are very effective in crime prevention also,' said the sources.
'The ANPR cameras can provide us vital details like the registration numbers, colour and type or model of the vehicles, etc. Since these information would provide us important clues about the movement of suspicious vehicles carrying suspects escaping from the city after committing a crime here or entering the city after orchestrating their sinister designs in neighbouring areas or districts, these electronic eyes give the law-enforcers an advantage round the clock in crime control and crime detection,' says Commissioner of Police, Tirunelveli City, Santosh Hadimani, who has taken this initiative.