Karnataka HC orders CCTV audit after Whitefield UPS failure

For about 11 months in 2024, CCTV cameras at Whitefield police station could not operate during power outages because the station lacked a working UPS, the Karnataka High Court has noted.

Justice Suraj Govindaraj has directed the State government to audit CCTV systems and backup-power infrastructure at police stations across Karnataka. The Additional Chief Secretary (Home) and the Director General and Inspector General of Police must personally examine the systems, including the Whitefield station.

The directions came during Shailaja’s petition seeking CCTV footage related to her visit to the station over a complaint. Police said the footage was unavailable because of the defective UPS.

The audit will cover the number and location of cameras, their condition and maintenance, recording and storage capacity, and whether UPS units can keep cameras running through power cuts. The court noted that most stations had around four cameras, while UPS capacities ranged from 0.5 kVA and 1 kVA to 600 kVA.

The proposed state-level dashboard must show each station’s cameras, send alerts when equipment goes offline, track UPS battery health and log repairs. The court has also ordered BESCOM records for Whitefield on September 4, 2024, between 11 am and 2.30 pm to be checked for any power interruption.