Jaagte raho...
Fear of house break-ins keeps residents of Maninagar society awake for past 15 days; men find it difficult to attend office, while children have been forced to skip school
Yogesh Avasthi, Vijay Zala
Posted On Saturday, June 15, 2013 (http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/article/2/2013061520130615025636809f0364bd1/Jaagte-raho.html
Yogesh Avasthi, Vijay Zala
Posted On Saturday, June 15, 2013 (http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/article/2/2013061520130615025636809f0364bd1/Jaagte-raho.html
Residents of a Maninagar society have been spending sleepless nights for the past 15 days. The fear of thieves has been keeping them awake all night. With the police doing little to infuse confidence in the people and stop the house break-ins in the area, they have decided to take their safety and security into their own hands. Men, women and children of Chandra Prakash Cooperative Housing Society Part II have been keeping awake with sticks and water pipes to keep at bay the perceived threat to their lives and property.
According to the residents, for the past one month, thieves have been found frequenting their society and neighbouring societies in broad daylight. It is only their alertness that has kept the burglars away, the residents claim. Soon after the clock strikes 10 at night, when most people prepare themselves to sleep, around 25 persons, including men and women of Chandra Prakash Society, get ready with sticks, pipes and torches to begin their vigil.
Once they are done with their household duties, groups of five each, move about in different directions keeping their eyes and ears open to any intruders. If anyone comes across any suspects, they raise an alarm and inform the other members who in turn gather the other groups for a quick response. The society falls under Kagdapith police station. Ketan Raval, 38, works in a private firm during the day and keeps awake in his society at night. Raval said, “Thieves have been frequenting this area and it is the police’s duty to take care of our safety and security, but unfortunately we are left to fend for ourselves.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to stay awake and then work in office during the day.” Raval claimed a thief was even nabbed by a neighbouring society recently. “Around a week back, a suspicious person had entered our neighbouring Kamlesh Society around 3 am. When residents raised an alarm, he jumped the compound wall and entered Sahajanand Society, where residents nabbed him. But since nothing was found on him, he was thrashed and handed over to the police,” he said.
ROBBERY FOILED
Bungalow no. 60 belongs to retired BSNL officer Dilip Shah. The 61-yearold senior citizen is a shaken man after an attempted robbery at his house. Shah said, “Around 3 am on June 2, I and my wife were sleeping on the ground floor of our house, while our son was sleeping on the first floor. The second floor was locked. “Using the gas pipeline, an unidentified person climbed up the second floor and broke the door latch and entered the house.
He broke open the safe and ransacked everything, but found nothing. So he gathered some clothes in a bag and tried to escape, but was found and fled the place.” Uma Bhatt, a woman staying opposite Shah’s house, was awake at the time and saw something unusual happening in Shah’s house and raised an alarm. Hearing the commotion, the thief left the bag and got down the pipe before making good his escape.
Meanwhile, everybody gathered and went up to check the house and found the room was ransacked. The bag with clothes was also found, but nothing was stolen. Shah filed an application in this regard with Kagdapith police and also made a request to increase patrolling the area. “But police have done little to boost our confidence,” Shah said. Nidhi Raval, 30, a housewife who lives in the society, said, “Since June 3, we have been keeping vigil day and night in the society. Suspicious looking persons have been found loitering in the area.
So we have to be alert and awake. This has affected the studies of children who have not been able to attend school.” The residents can’t even leave their house to do something, she said. Another woman, Kalpana Bhatt, 40, claimed to have kept some rogue elements away from their society. “Four days ago some persons came in an autorickshaw and were doing a round of our society. I caught hold of one of the persons. But he managed to free himself and the persons fled the spot.” According to Kagdapith Police Inspector M K Limbath, “We have increased patrolling in the area after being apprised of suspicious activity in the area. But I have no idea if locals have been keeping awake at night.”
According to the residents, for the past one month, thieves have been found frequenting their society and neighbouring societies in broad daylight. It is only their alertness that has kept the burglars away, the residents claim. Soon after the clock strikes 10 at night, when most people prepare themselves to sleep, around 25 persons, including men and women of Chandra Prakash Society, get ready with sticks, pipes and torches to begin their vigil.
Once they are done with their household duties, groups of five each, move about in different directions keeping their eyes and ears open to any intruders. If anyone comes across any suspects, they raise an alarm and inform the other members who in turn gather the other groups for a quick response. The society falls under Kagdapith police station. Ketan Raval, 38, works in a private firm during the day and keeps awake in his society at night. Raval said, “Thieves have been frequenting this area and it is the police’s duty to take care of our safety and security, but unfortunately we are left to fend for ourselves.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to stay awake and then work in office during the day.” Raval claimed a thief was even nabbed by a neighbouring society recently. “Around a week back, a suspicious person had entered our neighbouring Kamlesh Society around 3 am. When residents raised an alarm, he jumped the compound wall and entered Sahajanand Society, where residents nabbed him. But since nothing was found on him, he was thrashed and handed over to the police,” he said.
ROBBERY FOILED
Bungalow no. 60 belongs to retired BSNL officer Dilip Shah. The 61-yearold senior citizen is a shaken man after an attempted robbery at his house. Shah said, “Around 3 am on June 2, I and my wife were sleeping on the ground floor of our house, while our son was sleeping on the first floor. The second floor was locked. “Using the gas pipeline, an unidentified person climbed up the second floor and broke the door latch and entered the house.
He broke open the safe and ransacked everything, but found nothing. So he gathered some clothes in a bag and tried to escape, but was found and fled the place.” Uma Bhatt, a woman staying opposite Shah’s house, was awake at the time and saw something unusual happening in Shah’s house and raised an alarm. Hearing the commotion, the thief left the bag and got down the pipe before making good his escape.
Meanwhile, everybody gathered and went up to check the house and found the room was ransacked. The bag with clothes was also found, but nothing was stolen. Shah filed an application in this regard with Kagdapith police and also made a request to increase patrolling the area. “But police have done little to boost our confidence,” Shah said. Nidhi Raval, 30, a housewife who lives in the society, said, “Since June 3, we have been keeping vigil day and night in the society. Suspicious looking persons have been found loitering in the area.
So we have to be alert and awake. This has affected the studies of children who have not been able to attend school.” The residents can’t even leave their house to do something, she said. Another woman, Kalpana Bhatt, 40, claimed to have kept some rogue elements away from their society. “Four days ago some persons came in an autorickshaw and were doing a round of our society. I caught hold of one of the persons. But he managed to free himself and the persons fled the spot.” According to Kagdapith Police Inspector M K Limbath, “We have increased patrolling in the area after being apprised of suspicious activity in the area. But I have no idea if locals have been keeping awake at night.”
