The Metropolitan Police installed 11 close-circuit Television (CCTV) cameras in the area surrounding Singhadurbar, which also houses Nepal’s parliament, as a part of its pilot project to keep surveillance and prevent criminal activities. According to the Metropolitan Police, the new devices have not only helped reduce criminal activities and maintain peace and security in the capital but have also supported the management of the Valley’s chaotic traffic. Especially when the Nepal Police and crime investigation authorities have suffered for lack of scientific investigation techniques and technology, the installations can indeed prove to be an effective means of monitoring and tracking physical evidences and of producing them at a court of law to initiate proceedings against offenders.

However, as effectual as they might seem, the CCTV cameras cannot automatically control crime unless police and other crime control agencies work hard and take immediate action if need be. While the step taken by the Metropolitan Police must be taken in a positive light, the authorities need to make sure that similar steps are taken in other places that are most vulnerable to criminal activities. The success of the drive depends on whether the police are able to match the introduction of this technology with determination and integrity to control crime in the city.