Pune: PMC Spent Rs 16 Crore on CCTV Cameras, But Doesn’t Know How Many Are Working
Pune, 27th June 2026: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has admitted that it does not have accurate information on how many of the nearly 2,000 CCTV cameras installed across the city are currently operational, despite spending over ₹16 crore on the surveillance network.
According to a written reply submitted by the civic administration in response to a query raised by BJP corporator Priyanka Shendge during the June General Body meeting, the PMC installed 1,998 CCTV cameras across Pune between April 2019 and March 2022 using ward-level corporator funds at a cost of over ₹16 crore.
However, after the maintenance period assigned to contractors expired, the civic body failed to float fresh tenders for the repair and upkeep of the cameras. As a result, a large number of CCTV cameras have become non-functional due to technical faults, damaged network cables, and power supply issues.
The administration stated that all the cameras were connected to the nearest police chowky or police station at the time of installation. While the original contracts included maintenance responsibilities for two to three years, no new maintenance contracts have been awarded since those periods ended.
Police authorities have reportedly informed the PMC about several non-functional cameras. However, repairs have not been carried out due to a lack of funds, leaving a significant portion of the city’s surveillance network defunct.
Despite the poor condition of the existing network, the PMC installed another 252 CCTV cameras in the Kasba Assembly constituency during 2023 and 2024 using MLA funds, spending an additional ₹2 crore.
The written reply also revealed that the PMC’s Road Department had granted permission to excavate nearly 28 kilometres of roads for laying CCTV network cables. However, the restoration of these roads remains incomplete. According to the administration, only around 40 per cent of the resurfacing work has been completed by the contractor so far, raising concerns over public inconvenience and road safety during the ongoing monsoon.
