BURGLARS are enjoying a free run in the city, especially on the outskirts of Nagpur, even as a whopping 70 per cent house-breaking thefts (HBTs) are undetected every year. This year too, out of 514 HBT cases registered, police have managed to solve only 157, that is, 30.54 per cent detection rate.

Nagpur city police statistics have established that residential areas in Zone IV and Zone V are most vulnerable for burglaries as the two zones contributed 62.1 per cent HBTs reported in Nagpur till August this year. Highest 180 HBTs

were reported in Zone IV out of which the police managed to detect just 42 thefts with lowest 23.33 per cent detection rate.

Hudkeshwar police station topped the chart of HBTs where 57 houses were targeted by burglars, followed by 32 cases in Wathoda, 27 in Beltarodi and 22 in Ajni police station area.

Zone V reported 164 HBTs and cops managed to solve 52 cases with a 31.70 per cent detection rate. Maximum 49 thefts were registered at Kalamna police station, followed by 31 in Koradi, 25 in Jaripatka and 20 in Pardi police station. The Kalamna Police managed to arrest burglars involved in 24 theft cases with detection rate of almost 50 per cent.

“Burglars always choose their ‘target’ after observing safe entry and exit. Such possibility is available in the outskirts of the city due to scattered construction of houses,” a top police officer said while commenting on the statistics.

Hudkeshwar, Wathoda, Beltarodi, Ajni, Kalamna and Koradi Police Stations man outskirts of Nagpur. “Intensifying patrolling after studying patterns of thefts and vulnerable areas could act as a deterrent,” the officer claimed, adding that installation of CCTV cameras in theft prone areas would also help in detection.

Theft cases are directly concerned to the common man as one loses a big part of savings to thieves. However, the police officials do not take such cases on priority as compared to body offences. A high-level officer, while talking to ‘The Hitavada’, said that senior officers should take a ‘class’ of the Detection Branch (DB) of every police station and HBT Detection squad of Crime Branch over the matter. Detection of theft cases is difficult as the investigators need to identify the footprints of the burglar. However, it’s not a big challenge for the police if the senior officers resolve to put a brake on such cases, the official said.

“The role of top officers is most important for detection as they should take continuous review of investigation of theft cases. The officers should also check whether the DB squads and HBT Detection squad of the Crime Branch are really taking painstaking efforts to solve the cases or just sitting idle at police stations,” the officer exclaimed.