Fearing for the safety of their children after the shocking serial killings case came to light, the residents of Nithari village in Noida are planning to carry out community policing to avert such an incident in the future.
"We have so many plans to strengthen security and surveillance in our village. In our coming panchayat meeting, we will discuss all these measures, including community policing," said Bikram Pradhan, the former pradhan (head) of Nithari village panchayat.
If the plan turns into action, a squad will be created comprising young people from the village that will patrol the village and surrounding areas.
"The squad will be alert for suspicious looking people and activities," Pradhan said.
He said the demography of the village is such that surveillance is a challenging task. The original inhabitants of the village number around 5,000, while over 20,000 people, most of whom are migrant workers, live in rented accommodation in the village. "In fact, the huge population is proving to be a challenge. Parents go to work leaving behind their kids at home. In most of the families, there is nobody to look after the kids," he said.
Besides community policing, the villagers may keep the records of the people coming to the village and staying there.
The families, who are renting out houses, may be asked to verify the antecedents of the people taking the house on rent.
"The panchayat meeting will be convened soon after the present situation settles down," he added.
Meanwhile, the villagers have become more careful in the aftermath of the killings and are not allowing their kids to go to school alone.
"Now I am taking my kids to school and bringing them back," said Shailendra Mandal, whose two children study in a primary school in Sector 37 of Noida.
Many of the women members of the migrated families work as domestic help in Noida. They are now taking their small kids with them, while going to work.
