The Hindu 23.12.2013
Mandya CMC takes steps to bring in transparency, efficiency
Nine CCTV cameras installed on office premises.
In order to bring in transparency and efficiency in administration, closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras have been installed on the Mandya City Municipal Council (CMC) office premises.
The cameras were installed a few days ago. However, based on footage recorded by a surveillance camera, CMC Commissioner M. Dase Gowda recently caught an employee red-handed while he was allegedly taking money from the public.
Mr. Gowda seized Rs. 6,500 from the employee and issued a show-cause notice to him.
The Mandya CMC has several divisions, including revenue, civil engineering, accounts, khata transfer and officials’ chambers. Hundreds of people regularly visit the CMC for official work. However, the ‘middlemen menace’ has been causing problems for people visiting the CMC office.
Authorities were urged to take measures to monitor officials, who had a nexus with middlemen.
The CMC finally installed nine CCTV cameras at key places in the office, Mr. Gowda told The Hindu here on Saturday.
“The CCTV cameras will play a crucial role in curbing the middlemen menace and will bring in transparency in administration. An employee receiving cash from someone was captured on CCTV camera. We recovered around Rs. 6,500 from the employee, which was unaccounted for,” the CMC Commissioner said.
The CCTV cameras have been installed at a cost of Rs. 85,000. The storage capacity of the high-resolution cameras is 10 days. The CMC had plans to install a few more CCTV cameras in phases, he said.
The CMC president and Commissioner can see the footage captured in their respective offices.
