Kathmandu, November 26:

The crime rate in the Kathmandu Valley “has gone down drastically” after the formation of a separate police unit, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner’s Office (MPCO) at Ranipokhari said today.

According to the MPCO, 21 cases of theft, 10 looting, one murder, three cheating and seven stabbing cases used to be reported every week on an average before November 7. “This week, the number has gone down drastically with 15 cases of theft, six cases of looting and three cases of stabbing,” the MPCO said. No cases of murder and cheating were reported this week, it added.

Keshav Adhikari, SP at the Metropolitan Crime Investigation Branch, said increased movement of police personnel and new working style of the metropolitan police have helped to bring down crime rate.