Akola GRP ranks second among Nagpur's six railway police stations with 326 FIRs

Six railway police stations fall under the Nagpur railway police jurisdiction: Nagpur, Akola, Wardha, Badnera, Gondia and Itwari. By the number of crimes registered, the Akola GRP police station ranks second.

According to the available figures, 656 FIRs were registered at Nagpur GRP, 326 at Akola, 279 at Wardha, 185 at Badnera, 170 at Gondia and 65 at Itwari. The most crimes were thus registered within the limits of the Nagpur railway police station.

Notably, Akola's figure is higher than that of each of the four stations of Wardha, Badnera, Gondia and Itwari. The Akola GRP periodically announces various actions and arrests of accused persons. But the figures raise the question of how effective its long-term measures to curb overall crime are, compared with the publicity given to small actions. A review of the functioning of Akola GRP has therefore become necessary.

The Akola railway station and its surroundings see heavy crowds of passengers. Preventing crimes, including theft of passengers' mobile phones, luggage and valuables, is a major challenge for the railway police. Given the rising number of crimes, more effective patrolling, CCTV surveillance, watch on suspects and checks on the movements of habitual offenders are said to be needed.

The figures show that the crime graph within the Akola railway police station limits is rising. Senior officers therefore need to take this seriously. Rather than acting only after a crime has occurred, preventive measures before crimes happen are necessary. Strengthening security at the railway station and increasing continuous patrols at sensitive spots have also been described as necessary.

For the safety of passengers, regular review of Akola GRP's working methods and crime prevention measures is also needed.