Police personnel watching surveillance camera visuals from the hairpin bends of the Valparai ghat section at the Master Command and Control Centre of the Coimbatore District Police on Monday.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
The scenic but treacherous ghat section of Pollachi – Valparai Road that lacked surveillance cameras for years is now under the watch of the Coimbatore District (Rural) Police.Surveillance cameras installed by the district police at all the 40 hairpin bends of the ghat section are now streaming live visuals to the newly opened Master Command and Control Centre (MCCC) at the office of the Superintendent of Police.Each hairpin bend has two cameras, facing ascending and descending vehicles. The police can monitor the movement of vehicles and detect traffic blocks or accidents to take swift action.The cameras were installed under the leadership of former SP K. Karthikeyan, who was transferred and posted as Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order), Tambaram, recently.New SP Allatipalli Pavan Kumar Reddy has instructed the personnel manning the MCCC to keep close watch of the ghat section to take proactive measures.In order to protect the cameras from anti-social elements and wild animals, mainly monkeys, they have been placed inside metal boxes.Senior police officers said that the cameras will help the police identify vehicles involved in reckless driving and in the detection of crimes. Visuals from the cameras will also help the police ascertain reasons in the event of accidents at hairpin bends.On April 17, a van carrying tourists from Malappuram district in Kerala veered off the 13th hairpin bend and rolled down to the ninth hairpin bend, killing eight persons on the spot. Two more passengers died later and only three persons, including the van’s driver, survived the accident. Due to the lack of cameras at the spot back then, the police or the Road Transport Authority could not ascertain the actual cause of the accident. Speeding at the hairpin bend was suspected as the main reason. Published - June 01, 2026 07:54 pm IST
