Mumbai, India is to get 6000 CCTV cameras in what is being described as a London-style surveillance system. The decision to purchase the system comes three years after the 2008 terrorist attack which left 164 dead and wounded at least 308.
According to the Mumbai Mirror, a proposal to purchase 5000 cameras – instigated immediately following the attack on 26 November 2008 – was shelved due to “red tape” but was hastily revived after a triple-bomb attack last year.
The city currently has 400 cameras which will become part of the new system, which will also incorporate automated number plate recognition (ANPR).
The public system will be linked to cameras in quasi-public spaces like shopping malls, railway stations and bus depots, with each of 93 police stations in the city also having access to images.
It is anticipated that 700 staff will be recruited to monitor the images 24/7 and the system will go live in 2013.