KATHMANDU, Jan 11: Hit-and-run cases are a frequent headache for the traffic police in Nepal. This is also because of the negligible use of technology to monitor traffic on the roads and highways throughout the country, including in the Kathmandu Valley.

Realizing this, the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office, with support from the Kathmandu Metropolitan City, has brought in new technology in the Valley that allows the police to monitor the vehicles plying the roads in the Valley.

The Valley Traffic Police Office has started using high-tech cameras called 'automatic number plate recognition camera (ANPRC)' that can read the vehicle number plate and the drivers' activities behind the wheel. Police believe that this technology will mainly help them monitor the drivers' activities.

The use of these advanced cameras will help the traffic police find out whether the person driving the vehicle has fastened the seat belt or not, or is smoking, or talking on his/her mobile phone.

Senior Superintendent of Police Dinesh Raj Mainali, the spokesperson for the Kathmandu Valley Police Office, said it is believed that this technology will provide immense help in traffic policing as these devices read the number plates of vehicles, capture photos of the activities up to the driver's seat and send the information to the server.

"For instance, if a vehicle is involved in a hit-and-run incident, and we only know the color of that vehicle and not its number plate, the cameras installed overhead the road read the number plates of the vehicles passing by that road and send it to the server. By scrutinizing the information in the server, we can know the number plates of all vehicles of that color passing through the road. In this way, we can track the vehicle owner by coordinating with the Transport Office," he explained.

This ANPR camera will contribute to providing fact-based information surrounding the incident. When verbal statements may be unreliable, technology and evidence will provide the facts, according to SSP Mainali.

Presently, ANPR cameras have been placed in Munibhairabh, New Bus Park, and Maharajgunj areas. These advanced cameras boast the capability to accurately read number plates in the Nepali script and embossed formats, capturing and transmitting details promptly to the Kathmandu Valley's police control room. Munibhairav has four cameras, Maharajgunj has four, and the bus park area has two.

The police expect the fixations of these cameras will significantly be helpful in identifying details in 'hit and run' cases, where traditional investigations are often marred by challenges in identifying drivers and vehicles involved.

Kathmandu metropolis has supported the installation of such cameras. The Kathmandu Valley Police realizes the need to expand the system to other areas as well.

It has been assured of support from other local governments to install such cameras in other areas. It plans to install them along the transit points to Kathmandu within the current fiscal year. These cameras remain functional during nights as well. 

It has been planned to install 170 such cameras in the Valley including face recognition cameras at 10 locations, ANPR cameras at 10 locations and AI technology- based cameras at 150 locations. The office has the technical assistance from Synergy IT Solutions to implement this technology.

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