Chennai: Growing inconvenience faced by victims of cyber fraud has triggered demands to relocate the south Chennai cyber crime branch police station from the Chennai airport campus to either Guindy or St. Thomas Mount, where it was previously more accessible.
The south Chennai cyber crime branch police station currently functions within the Chennai airport premises alongside the airport police station and the office of the assistant commissioner of police.
However, unlike the other two establishments, the cyber crime unit witnesses heavy daily footfall with nearly 40 to 50 complainants and witnesses visiting the station every day.
The police station caters not only to cyber crime cases registered in Alandur, Adambakkam and Meenambakkam police limits but also to complaints from several police districts across south Chennai, including Mylapore, Mandaveli, Adyar, Mambalam, Vadapalani, Virugambakkam, Ashok Nagar, Velachery and Madipakkam.
With cyber crime cases continuing to rise across Chennai, the number of visitors to the station has increased significantly.
A major grievance raised by complainants is the parking fee collected at the airport toll plaza. Most visitors arrive by private vehicles, and in many cases family members, lawyers and witnesses travel separately. Since enquiries often take three to four hours, they are required to pay parking charges while exiting the airport campus.
Visitors argue that while collecting parking fees from air travellers and those visiting the airport is justified, the same charges should not be imposed on people entering the premises solely to access a government police station.
According to those visiting the cyber crime unit, heated arguments over parking charges have become a regular occurrence at the airport toll plaza, with many questioning why victims seeking police assistance should pay airport parking fees.
Another difficulty highlighted by complainants is the absence of photocopy and printing facilities within the airport campus. Although shops selling cigarettes and other items operate inside the premises, there is no facility to obtain photocopies or print documents, they point out.
As police frequently require photocopies of identity cards, bank records and other supporting documents during investigations, complainants are forced to travel to Pallavaram, Meenambakkam or Alandur to get the documents copied.
On returning to the airport campus, they often end up paying parking charges a second time.
Members of the public and lawyers say these additional expenses and repeated travel create an unnecessary burden for victims who have already suffered financial losses due to cyber fraud.
They have urged the Chennai airport authorities to exempt vehicles visiting the cyber crime branch police station from airport parking charges or introduce a separate access mechanism for such visitors.
Many people have also appealed to the Chennai police to relocate the south Chennai cyber crime branch police station to a more accessible location.
Until about a year ago, the cyber crime unit functioned from the Guindy police station campus. Visitors say that location was far more convenient, as it did not involve airport parking charges and had easy access to photocopying and other public services.
It was also centrally located for residents from Adyar, Mylapore, Ashok Nagar, Vadapalani and several other parts of south Chennai.
They now suggest that the police station be shifted back to the Guindy police station campus or to the office of the joint commissioner of police (south), located at St. Thomas Mount, stating that either location would significantly improve accessibility and reduce the hardships faced by cyber crime victims.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: deccanchronicle.com
