Urbanisation's biggest challenge is ensuring a safe and secure city, believes N R Das, director general of the central industrial security force (CISF). Speaking at a Ficci conference here on Friday, Das said, "Community partcipation can help control crimes."

Outlaying focuses of a security strategy, he added, " Compenents of city security are planning, physical security, surveillance, good response mechanism, technology and most importantly, a quick reaction team."

Speakers at the two-day event on July 28-29 largely agreed that technology can help achive security goals of cities.

Sanjay Sahay, an inspector-general of Karnataka police, said a uniform framework of ‘ERP solutions for database creation and information processing, GIS-based crime analysis and reporting engine, command and control centre, interception systems, tetra radio network, video surveillance system and automatic vehicle location system’ can help build a safe city. 

S Suresh Kumar, joint secretary (police modernisation) at the ministry of home affairs stressed on the need of integrating intelligence and modernisation of police in the country.

Corporate representatives at the conference talked about how private sector involvement could help secure cities.

“Corporate in India have a key role to play in the safety and security of the country and thus they should invest in technologies for prevention and detection of terrorism in the country,” Vivek Lal, president & CEO, new ventures, Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) said.

IT companies like Sunworks Technologies, CA, Oracle and Radware made presentations on the kinds of security technologies that are available in the country.