Gandhinagar: Gujarat Government has achieved the target to install 7000 CCTV cameras on 1-5-2022 under Project VISWAS. The state government is currently preparing for implementation of Phase-II. Under this, the outreach of VISWAS will be further extended to 51 tier-3 cities. More than 10,000 CCTV cameras will be installed in these cities. Tendering, for the same, is under process. Phase-II shall be completed by end of 2023.

Success of VISWAS

There was a reduction of 19.09% of road accidents from 2018 to 2021 owing to the compact and dedicated network of CCTV cameras. 15,32,253 e-Challans for violating traffic norms were issued as of 13 June, 2022. These e-challans were worth Rs.55,20,80,100. Payment procedure for e-challans was facilitated through the payment portal. This has made the process smoother and transparent.

Further, CCTV cameras and e-challans have led to a positive change in the behavior of the people. Body worn cameras and drones have not only accelerated monitoring and governance but also reduced the dependence on human force and increased transparency.

Surveillance using technology

Project VISWAS uses Intelligent Traffic Management System. Under this, the CCTV camera performs automatic number plate recognition, red light violation detection and has an alert mechanism for stolen vehicles. The government can easily detect illegal parkings, unwanted substances, gain an understanding of crowd movement, have a head count of people and above all, find people who disturb CCTV monitoring. As of now, there are 10,000 body worn cameras and 15 drones.

Gujarat has outperformed India in E-governance. A majority of the public welfare services are available online. The mantra of ‘Minimum Government, Maximum Governance’ has been realised to its full potential. Recently, Chief Minister Shri Bhupendra Patel, in an event in Rajkot said, “ The state government is dedicated to ensure good governance. More than 200 types of public welfare services will reach to villages across Gujarat in the coming days. Late Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee often said that a country shall prosper when its villages are able to enjoy fruits of development.”

Additional Chief Secreatary of Home Department Mr. Rajkumar said, “Project VISWAS has become instrumental in strengthening law and order, detecting crimes and traffic management. The state government has strategically installed CCTV cameras across Gujarat. The reach of this project will be extened to smaller cities in the coming days. This will not only ensure safety of the people but also provide them better governance at the doorstep.”

About VISWAS

In 2013-14, the then Chief Minister of Gujarat Narendra Modi envisioned to establish a state-wide CCTV network to curb traffic violations and ensure safety of the people.

A pilot project was launched from 2013 to 2015 and implemented in Ahmedabad, Vadodara and Gandhinagar. Based on the success of this project, VISWAS (Video Integration and State-Wide Advance Security) was launched in January 2020.

VISWAS is a major e-governance initiative of Home Department, Government of Gujarat and the first of its kind in the country covering Tier – I, Tier –II and Tier –III cities for establishing CCTV Camera based safety and Integrated Traffic Management System (ITMS) in 41 cities across the state including 34 district headquarters and 6 pilgrimage places (Somnath, Dwarka, Palitana, Ambaji, Pavagadh and Dakor) and Statue of Unity under Phase-I. Monitoring of live feeds is done at ‘Netram’- the district Command and Control Centre. The ‘Netram’ Command and Control Centre of each district is connected to the State Command and Control Centre ‘Trinetra’.

The objectives of Project VISWAS are:

1. Safety of streets & public areas

2. Proactive Traffic Management & Control

3. Post Incident Investigation & Video Forensics

4. Principle of “4D” of Homeland Security: Deterrence, Detect, Delay & Denial of crime

5. Road Safety & Improved Urban mobility