Extra-cover for IPL: How cops track snatchers, punters, dogs at Chepauk | Ipl News

Around 35,000 people flocked to the MA Chidambaram Stadium — also known as Chepauk — to watch the M S Dhoni versus Virat Kohli duel on March 28. During the match, the Greater Chennai Police received a notification of a stolen mobile phone through the QR code pasted in different parts of the stadium. To pick from the crowded stands was a difficult task. But police not only found the offender but also recovered 84 stolen phones, including those picked from the stadium, in just two days.Behind the mystery-solving was forensic combing powered the Greater Chennai Police’s AI-driven security platform Chennai Singam, a face recognition software and surveillance cameras, apart from the hundreds of policemen scattered in and around the arena. Their eyes are all-pervasive, watching every step a spectator, or even a dog or cat, takes in the stadium. The colour of their clothes are taken note of. So are the words on the banners and posters as well as those showing any suspicious behaviour, who could potentially be a punter, pickpocket, or a chain-snatcher. Crowd control, obviously, goes on routinely.
Using the example of the stolen mobile complaint, Dr Vijayakumar, Joint Commissioner, Greater Chennai Police (East), explains the process. “When we got the alert through QR code, we used specific cameras to identify suspects. We got the lead through the analytics. He was dressed like a proper fan, and wore a CSK t-shirt,” the officer says.
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Most of the fans, Vijayakumar says, come in groups or in pairs. If someone comes alone and is not enjoying the game or not talking to those around him, police begin to monitor him. “This person wasn’t interested in the game. He was looking for something else. He became a point of interest and after further scrutiny we figured he belonged to a gang that was seated across the stadium. We identified them the next day and nabbed them a couple of days later from Vellore,” Vijayakumar says.
To ensure better crowd management, the Greater Chennai Police ahead of this IPL season put in a request with the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association to increase the number of CCTV cameras. Following this, 120 more cameras were added to the 250 already installed.
The Chennai Singam app provides real-time visuals and movement of every person to a control room in the E stand of the stadium, where around 20 police personnel scan the different cameras.
With the stadium being a vulnerable spot for phone thefts, police have stored the photographs of those with crime records in the system. “On the directions of the Commissioner of Police A Arun, there is a database of individuals in the police scanner — especially those in the FIRs. All their photographs are fed into the system,” Vijayakumar says. “So if any of them enters the stadium, it will be captured the face-recognising software and alert us. If we press the button, all cameras will track his movements in real time. We can also check it retrospectively.”Story continues below this ad
The mobile phone snatchers were not part of the database. “So with our intelligence and analytics, we were able to zero-in on the suspect. Thanks to technology, we were able to nab three different gangs, who were all stationed in Vellore and were moving between Chennai and Bengaluru for IPL games and in Tirupathi,” Vijayakumar says.
The investigation has not stopped with the arrests. “They are all from Jharkhand. They got the tickets from black market and we are checking the source of it as well,” he says.
AI’s hand and brain
While human judgement and experience help crack cases, the AI is performing its role to perfection as well. In its dashboard there is a count of the number of fans wearing the CSK jersey and the opponent’s t-shirt. Similarly, anyone wearing black shirts or any other colour.
“In the user box, we have fed queries. For example: If a person is holding a banner in both hands, it will flag us. Even if we miss it in real time, the AI will alert us. Since it is a sports event there is no space for political or religious or any offending banner. If any of them are carrying such posters, we will get an alert. Some of the rowdies on bail or undertrials also come for the matches. We keep an eye on them. We don’t stop them,” Vijayakumar says.Story continues below this ad
Police have identified a few pickpockets, too. “When a match is in progress and somebody is walking away, and if it is suspicious, we get an alert. For example, most of the mobile phone snatching happens when the spectators get up from the seats to celebrate or at the hospitality boxes and washrooms. These are vulnerable points. These places, we have given user cases where if an individual is close to a person and is taking the phone, it will throw an alert. The idea is to prevent such thefts,” Vijayakumar says.
A bigger task is to spot the courtsiding punters, who exploit the delay in transmission time from the ground to the television or streaming platforms that could be up to 10 seconds. The Greater Chennai Police, in coordination with the BCCI’s anti-corruption unit, is tracking a few such suspects, Vijayakumar says.
“We have a few leads and we are tracking them. We coordinate with the BCCI and before every game, we have a meeting with them. They, too, share their inputs and if there is something (fishy) we follow up. Our special teams are working on it,” says the officer, revealing that since the RCB versus CSK game, there hasn’t been a single recorded phone or property theft at the stadium.