Rs216 crore order for CCTVs for Pune in 2-3 days: Patil

State home minister RR Patil on Saturday said that the work order for installing Rs216 crore CCTV network for Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad would be issued in a couple of days. The tender has been finalised in this regard, he said.

While speaking to mediapersons in Pune he said that the state government had appointed a high-powered committee at the chief secretary level to avoid any kind of delay in this regard. He informed that the committee also had additional chief secretary, home department, secretary, finance and IT secretary as members and the committee had all the authority to make provisions for purchase and actual purchase as well.

The home minister informed that since the committee has finalised the company for installing the CCTV network for Pune, the work order would be issued in the next two-three days. Patil further said that the company finalised would be responsible for the maintenance and even control room for the next five years.

Commenting on media’s criticism of the issue of CCTVs, Patil said that the work was taking ti0me since tender process has to be followed, and the stipulated period for tendering also cannot be reduced. He said that taking into account urgency of the CCTV infrastructure, if the government would have reduced the stipulated period for tendering, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) would have passed strictures against this decision and the media, in turn, would have taken the government to task. He said that is the reason why the committee, after due procedures, finalised the tender.

About pending transfers
When asked as to which of the home department files are pending at the Chief Minister’s office for approval, Patil said, “They are regarding transfers, and it is because there are two acts deciding the period for transfers in police department. The law for transfer needs to be amended since cases of transfers are growing and officers are approaching either Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal (MAT) or High Court. While the transfers up to the level of DySP go to DGP, for the posts above DySP, the clearance has to be done by the Chief Minister, and that is why the entire blame falls on the home minister.”