RAWALPINDI: The city police, for the first time, will be using drone cameras for surveillance and police operations.

Some 50 drone cameras were recently acquired by the Punjab Police and one such camera, weighing about 1200 grams was handed over to the Rawalpindi district police on Thursday. However, the cops are yet to receive training in operating the new gadget.

Along with district police, Police College Sihala and Punjab Highway Patrolling Police will also receive drone cameras for surveillance of criminal dens, protest demonstrations and terrorist hideouts.

The drone cameras are easy to operate and the built in cameras shoot videos and take photographs. The footage is transmitted live to a laptop or mobile phone device on the ground. The operator of device can guide it to change angles while shooting videos. The maximum flight time for each device is 25 minutes.

“The drone cameras will be used by police for monitoring and surveillance, especially during protests but an expert will be needed to operate it,” City Police Officer Israr Ahmed Abbasi told Dawn.

He said an IT expert from among the qualified police personnel will be trained to operate the device.

The remote controlled drone flies at a speed of 15 meters per second and captures visuals from a height of up to 60 meters.

Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2015

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