Centre should direct banks to block accounts immediately in case of fraud: Haryana CM

Faridabad, Oct 28 (IANS) Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Friday said the Central government should issue directions to financial institutions for blocking bank accounts even during a holiday in case of a cyber crime.

"Sometimes when a person reports cyber crime, immediate action is not taken because of weekends or public holidays. To keep a check on such crimes, the banking system should remain active round-the-clock," he said while speaking during the second day of the Chintan Shivir in Surajkund.

Presently, the fraud victims have to suffer financial losses because of the non-blocking of bank accounts in spite of getting timely information during holidays, said the Chief Minister while sharing his views on the topic of cybercrime discussed during the first session of the last day of the two-day Chintan Shivir.

The second day of Chintan Shivir started with the virtual address of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Chintan Shivir was held under the chairmanship of the Union Home Minister Amit Shah at Surajkund.

State Governors, Chief Ministers, Home Ministers, Director Generals of Police and other delegates held discussions relating to law and order and internal security of the country. After the Prime Minister's address, the topic of cybercrime was discussed.

Later in his address, Khattar said in the era of information technology, the cases of cyber crimes have also increased. Moving ahead in this direction, cyber desks have been set up in every police station. As many as 29 new cyber police stations are being opened across the state.

"Besides, we are also running several awareness camps to make people aware of cyber crimes through helpline number 1930 and cybercrime.gov.in portal," said the Chief Minister.

He said about 46,000 complaints related to cybercrime have been received in the state, in which 22,000 cases have been resolved and justice has been delivered to the victims while taking strict action against the criminals.

The Chief Minister also demanded to expand the scope of investigation of complaints in cyber crimes by amending Section 70 of the Information Technology Act.

He said 10 centres have been opened in the state for central police forces and work is in progress to set up three new centres. The state is also ready to provide land for setting up additional training or group centres for central police forces, he said.

About the police modernisation fund, the Chief Minister said the state government has made full use of this fund. Along with this, the Centre should also give a special package for the modernisation of Haryana Police and necessary resources.

He said the security agency in the state is constantly working to keep a check on drug smuggling. Commendable work has been done in collaboration with other adjoining states to stop smuggling through neighbouring countries.

Along with putting the criminals involved in drug smuggling behind the bars, the work of punishing them financially is also being done. The Crime and Criminal Tracking Networks and Systems (CCTNS) project has also been implemented in Haryana.

To prevent crimes against women, 33 new police stations and 239 helpdesks have been set up at the sub-division levels in the state. Free legal aid is also being provided to women. Also, the women's helpline has also been integrated with dial 112, added Khattar.