Odisha surrenders ₹76 crore as SC-mandated CCTV system falters, 823 cameras go offline

The Odisha government has surrendered ₹76 crore allocated for police station CCTV surveillance, even as 823 cameras across the state remain non-functional despite Supreme Court directions requiring them to operate at all times, according to a communication from the state police headquarters.

As many as 795 CCTV cameras installed in police stations and another 33 in police outposts were reported to be non-functional as of September 17, additional DGP (law and order) Sanjay Kumar wrote to additional chief secretary (home) Hemant Sharma.

The development comes despite the Supreme Court’s directions for the installation and continuous functioning of CCTV cameras at police stations and other offices of investigative agencies to ensure transparency and protect the human rights of accused persons.

The CCTV surveillance system has been installed in 645 police stations and 263 police outposts across Odisha pursuant to the apex court’s directions, the police headquarters said.

The issue was discussed with the state government at a meeting on March 12 this year, following which the Odisha Computer Application Centre (OCAC) was repeatedly requested to ensure that the CCTV cameras installed at police stations and outposts remained fully functional.

However, a report submitted by CCTV systems integrator Krystal Integrated Services Pvt Ltd/KELTRON on September 17 showed that more than 800 CCTV cameras continued to remain non-functional.

More than 16,000 CCTV cameras have been installed across the state’s police stations and outposts, according to sources in the state police headquarters.

“As per the directions of the Supreme Court of India, all CCTV cameras installed in Police Stations and Outposts are required to remain functional at all times,” the ADG (law and order) wrote, pointing out that ₹76 crore allocated for the installation of the CCTV surveillance system during the 2025-26 financial year had been surrendered.

The Supreme Court, in 2020, had directed the Centre to ensure the installation of CCTV cameras, or closed-circuit television cameras, in the offices of all investigative agencies, including police establishments, stressing the need for transparency and the protection of the human rights of accused persons.

Two years ago, the issue of non-functional CCTV cameras in police stations had come under sharp judicial scrutiny in Odisha following the alleged sexual assault of the fiancée of an Indian Army officer at Bharatpur police station in Bhubaneswar in September 2024.

The Orissa High Court, which took suo motu cognisance of the incident, had directed the state government to install CCTV cameras in all police stations. The court had expressed surprise that CCTV cameras were not installed at Bharatpur police station and that cameras were non-functional or unavailable in several other police stations.

Taking strong exception to the absence of CCTV surveillance at a police station in the state capital, then chief justice of the Orissa High Court Justice Chakradhari Sharan Singh had questioned the administrative failure and observed that functioning CCTV cameras could have revealed what had happened inside the police station.