CHENNAI: The city police are not too keen on using it, neither are the residents aware that such a system exists, despite Chennai being the first to introduce it in the country. The Electronic Beat System or the eBeat System installed in police stations in the city are non-functional, according to the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.The report said that in January 2005, the State government ordered implementation of an electronic beat system in Chennai to replace the existing manual beat system at a cost of Rs. 30 lakh.The report said that the equipment for the eBeat system was supplied to 60 police stations in Chennai between February and December 2007. The Audit noticed that in all the 11 test-checked police stations in Chennai where the eBeat system was supplied, it had not been in working condition for the past one year. The audit further states that the system is non-functional despite an annual contract with the firm that supplied the system for maintenance.The beat system, in general, had been existing in police stations for prevention and detection of crimes in which the constables from the respective stations visit conspicuous locations and maintain a record of incidences they notice. The eBeat system is one through which beat work of police stations can be monitored.Police said the system was based on Radio Frequency Identification Technology, in which a card is fed with particulars of the policeman on beat, including his number, name, time and place. The policeman will just have to swipe the card in the machines installed in a main place in their beat.“The system was introduced just to keep track of what the constables were up to. There were cases where the constables would just sit in the police stations and write fake information in the record.However, in eBeat, the time the constable comes to his beat can be monitored and in turn the details are fed in to the computer and it can help in assessing his performance,” said a police official.The audit further mentioned in its report that in August 2008, the department had procured another 200 eBeat systems for Chennai at a cost of `97.97 lakh. However, as of March 2010, the equipment was still to be installed in police stations and remained idle in the DGP’s office, informs the report. As a result, the existing manual beat system continued to be in use.The audit report had also sought a reply from the government that said in September 2010, suitable instructions had been given to the Commissioner of Police, Chennai to address the firm that would attend to the maintenance of the equipment as per the contract, immediately.The Government had also stated that 200 eBeat systems procured for Chennai had been distributed to the police stations in June 2010.“Department officials have made a list of police stations in suburban areas that has now been included in the Chennai city limit as the suburban stations do not have eBeat system,” said a police official in the suburban area.Many residents in the city are not aware that such a system exists. “I've been a resident of Anna Nagar for many years now. I do not know that such a system has been installed in my locality,” said Krishna.
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