Although banks provide Close Circuit Television (CCTV) camera inside the Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) but irony is that majority of them are non-functional, according to police. Interestingly, those which are functional are also not in proper condition and due to wrong angle and poor video quality it becomes difficult for authorities to get the desired footage during urgency.
A Student of St Xaviers College Vidhya Sagar Mandi narrating his bitter experience with the SBI ATM at lalpur chowk said, “Few days back I went to lalpur situated SBI ATM for withdrawal of Rs 500. In the ATM, we were two persons and the other man was a stranger. A few minutes after coming out from the ATM I realised my wallet was missing. I ran towards the ATM but was not able to find it. When I checked my account status my account — which had Rs 20,000 — was left with zero balance. Immediately, I contacted the SBI branch officer and narrated him the entire story. He assured me that the culprit will be figured out with the CCTV camera but the irony was that the footage recorded was too hazy to recognize anyone in it. lastly, I had to rest my case due to lack of evidence.”
Unlike Vidhya there are many other people too who had undergone such harrowing experiences. The administration record the case on paper and it remains on paper only. Due to lack of evidence the culprit moves freely on the city roads. When SBI ATM Manager Vijay Kerketta was enquired over the matter he passed the buck on the company that has been outsourced the responsibility by the bank.
He said, “It is not possible for the bank to keep an eye on its 182 ATMs, so the responsibility has been given to the firm. The company whose ATM machine has been installed is responsible for it maintenance. Wincore and Divolt are the companies whose ATM machines have been installed all across the State Capital.”
Meanwhile the responsible companies denied of having any loop hole in their service. Wincore company head of Ranchi, Amit Chaurasia said, “Our engineers take the review of machines and other equipments on monthly basis. In case of any defect the equipment is replaced immediately. In our knowledge all the CCTV cameras are functioning properly.”
However, the administration has also accepted that the CCTV cameras in many ATMs are only for the namesake. City SP Manoj Ratan said, “There are many ATMs in the city whose CCTV cameras are non-functional. We have informed the concerned bank about it and have asked them to look into the matter at the earliest.”