Vadodara, March 21 (IANS) Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi on Saturday said Gujarat is increasingly leveraging technology to strengthen both development and public safety, as he announced and inaugurated projects worth Rs 538 crore across Vadodara city and district.
Speaking at a programme where around 55 projects were inaugurated or had their foundation stones laid, Sanghavi said the scale of works reflected the state government’s commitment to overall development.
“Through the coordinated efforts of the double-engine government, Vadodara is setting new benchmarks of development. The inauguration and foundation laying of projects from a single platform is a symbol of the state government’s firm resolve,” he said.
A significant focus of the initiatives is on technology-driven policing under the Gujarat Police’s ‘Vishwas Project’.
Sanghavi said an advanced surveillance network integrating government and private CCTV cameras has been established in the city, with thousands of cameras connected to a unified system.
“This has helped in faster detection of crimes and strengthened the sense of security among citizens,” he said.
He added that the network would be upgraded with artificial intelligence-based tools, including facial recognition and automatic number plate recognition, describing these as “force multipliers” that would assist police in tracing offenders more quickly.
Sanghavi also highlighted investments in police housing, jail infrastructure and police stations, stating that such measures were aimed at improving the efficiency and welfare of personnel.
"Development works in the district include projects related to roads, buildings, education and infrastructure, including a key bridge on the Narmada river and rural road upgrades," he said.
State Minister Manisha Vakil said the inauguration of Cluster-4 under ‘Vishwas 2.0’ marked a step towards technology-led policing.
“The role of the police is now evolving beyond traditional systems and is increasingly linked with modern tools and technology,” she said, adding that systems such as CCTV surveillance, drones and the ‘Trinetra’ platform were strengthening security and public confidence.
State police chief K. L. N. Rao said the ‘Vishwas Project’ had led to improvements in crime detection and a reduction in crime rates through integration of CCTV networks, body-worn cameras and private surveillance systems.
"Further integration of camera networks across departments and wider deployment of technologies such as Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) and facial recognition were planned to enhance accuracy and response," Rao noted.
Vadodara Police Commissioner Narsimha Komar said the project has been implemented across 46 cities in the state, covering districts, major urban centres and key sites.
"District-level ‘NETRAM’ command and control centres and the state-level ‘Trinetra’ integrated command centre in Gandhinagar are being equipped with advanced data and video analytics systems to support prevention, detection and investigation, as well as traffic management," Komar asserted.
In Vadodara, he said, a total of 1,316 cameras — including CCTV, body-worn and drone cameras — are operational under ‘Netram’ and have been integrated with the Smart City network.
Cameras installed by private entities are also being mapped and utilised, enabling round-the-clock monitoring.
Separately, Sanghavi inaugurated a new building for the Public Trust Registration Office and the Joint Charity Commissioner in the city, built at a cost of Rs 4.12 crore under the state’s Law Department.
The G+2 structure, spread over 1,211.21 square metres, houses parking and reception facilities on the ground floor, the Assistant Charity Commissioner’s office on the first floor, and the Joint Charity Commissioner’s office on the second floor.
The building includes office and courtrooms, staff and record rooms, a waiting area and a conference room, along with amenities such as separate facilities for men, women and persons with disabilities, lifts, a water-cooler room, fire safety systems and rainwater harvesting.
Campus development works include a garden, internal roads, a pump and sump room, a security cabin, an entrance gate and a compound wall.
Tree plantation was also carried out on the premises following the inauguration.
