Kerala   

Spate of burglaries in city

LAW &ORDER Cases of thefts, break-ins and chain snatchings have shot up , writes Biju Govind

There has been a spurt in crime in Kozhikode city limits during the last one month.

The number of cases of thefts, break-ins and chain snatchings registered at police stations has shot up during the last one-week. In Puthiyara, burglars broke into a house and decamped with gold ornaments and cash. In Feroke, the target was a hospital where burglars decamped with Rs. 3.5 lakh from the safe- locker. A woman was robbed of her gold chain by two motorcycle-borne youth, on Kailamadom A.M.L.P.School Road at Pantheerankavu. Another burglary was reported from a house at Nellikkode.

Goods worth Rs. 25,000 were reportedly stolen from a shop near Kallai railway station under the limits of Panniyankkara police station. The thieves arrived in a stolen jeep from Ramanattukkara. The vehicle met with an accident when the Highway Police chased it. However, the culprits managed to escape.

Police personnel on night patrol nabbed a thief who had broken into a shop at Kunnamangalam in the early hours of Thursday.

Three shops on Mavoor Road were looted on Thursday. According to the police, goods valued at Rs.1 lakh were stolen from the shops.

The Resident's Apex Council of Kozhikode has expressed concern over the spate of burglaries in the city. " The police should be more active in the wake of the recent incidents," said K.P. Janardanan, secretary of the council.

Council joint secretary and Chinthavalappu Flats Residents Association president T.J. Varkey also expressed a similar view even while appreciating the city police for taking steps to launch the Maithri scheme (community policing). "The police personnel should concentrate more on basic policing. Even high schoolchildren are abused on city buses these days," said Mr. Varkey.

There have also been several incidents of harassment of women at bus stations, railway stations and public places. Two persons were arrested on the charges of harassing a woman at the Mofussil bus station on Thursday.

"Girl students usually suffer harassment at the hands of the bus cleaners who occupy their position on the footboard. Sometimes, the male passengers are the culprits," says B. Rajani, lecturer, Department of English, Zamorins' Guruvayurappan College.

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