Hyderabad sees big spike in mobile thefts in buses

Hyderabad: Mobile theft menace is growing in TSRTC buses in city. Mobile phones of passengers, specially college students during peak hours come in handy for pickpockets. The victims have stated that they could not recover their stolen phones even after lodging complaints. They urge the RTC and the police to control the menace.

There is a rise in mobile phone thefts both in buses and at bus-stands, specially during peak hours in various city routes. These thefts occur in crowded bus-stands like Secunderabad, Uppal, Ameerpet, Kukatpally, Mehdipatnam, besides the city outskirts where colleges are located like Ibrahimpatnam, Ghatkesar. Several complaints have been booked by students following theft of mobile phones in the Rachakonda Commissionerate limits. Several mobile phone-lifting gangs are reportedly at the work in the city. The victims said on a day over 10 complaints were lodged at a police station under Rachakonda limits. A victim, B Adarsh, a student at Anurag Engineering college, Ghatkesar, said "earlier this week me and a friend lost our mobile phones in an RTC bus. During peak hours, there were dozens of students who were boarding a bus at bus-stop. After boarding when we both entered, we saw our phones were lost from our pockets," he said.

He said 'we decided to lodge a complaint; when we went to nearby police station there were a few more victims who had lost their phones on the same route. "My phone was a Realme 8 Pro which cost Rs 20,000 and the other cost around Rs 18,000. Even after a complaint we could not recover our stolen phones," he added.

Another victim near Secunderabad, said during evening hours he lost his phone, as he was foot-boarding a bus. "The phone was stolen when I was trying to board the bus. Cleverly someone took out my phone from my pocket."

"After searching, I went to a police station. The most important item in the phone were pictures of all family members and the special moments of my children which I clicked. I also complained, but still have not recovered the phone." There are several such complaints on social media. The victims are posting on Twitter while tagging the TSRTC officials and the police to save them from the menace and recover their stolen phones.

Last Friday, Syed Qadeer, also lost his phone in a bus at Mehdipatnam. The mobile phones are being stolen during evening peak hours when college students as well as passengers from officers board buses. "The police have to set up teams at major bus stands where huge crowds are found; they must catch the criminals," he added.

According to the police, the stolen mobile phones can be traced only if they are switched on by offenders. However, they simply remove the SIM cards and keep the phone off for a few months to avoid detection. "The police are regularly urging citizens to be alert at bus-stops, in buses and at crowded places. They should safely keep their mobile phones to prevent thefts," said a senior police officer.