In India, the government of Delhi is rolling out an ambitious video surveillance program as a crime-prevention measure. Technicians will install more than a quarter million closed-circuit TV (CCTV) cameras near residential and commercial properties across the city, and in schools. A central monitoring system is expected to take care of behind-the-scenes logistics, though authorities have not shared details on how the feeds will be monitored.

After delays due to political and legal wrangles, the installations began on 7 and 8 July. The first cameras to go up in a residential area were installed in Laxmi Bai Nagar, at a housing society for government employees, and at the upmarket Pandara Road in New Delhi. When the roll out is complete, there will be an average of 4,000 cameras in each of Delhi’s 70 assembly constituencies, for a total of around 280,000 cameras.

In early 2020, the National Capital Territory of Delhi (usually just called ‘Delhi’), which includes New Delhi, the capital of India, will vote to elect a new state assembly. Lowering the crime rates is a key election issue for the incumbent Aam Aadmi Party (literally, Common Man’s [sic] Party). The party has promised that the CCTV cameras will deter premeditated crime and foster a semblance of order among the general public.