More minors in crime a major worry for police

NASHIK: Involvement of juveniles in crime is rising steadily in Nashik, particularly in the sphere of thefts and robberies.
Recently, the Deolali Camp police detained a minor in connection to the theft of two lakh rupees from the fire temple along the Lam Road. The minor was among four arrested in connection to the theft committed on September 6. Police also found three minors who had stolen bicycles to the tune of two lakhs in the Ambad area.
ACP Sachin Gore of the Crime Branch said, "Changing lifestyle and expensive habits are important aspects that lead to the rise of juveniles in criminal activities."
According to police records this year they have found 50 minors involved in thefts within the first eight months of 2016. In the entire year last year, the police had found only 28 juveniles committing similar crimes. With respect to robberies the police found involvement of 13 juveniles in the first eight months as against nine found in 2015.
He said, "While the lure of bikes, expensive mobile phones, designer clothes and spending money extensively on food and liquor was one thing that led juveniles to criminal activities, in most of the cases even parents of such children were found uninterested in what their child was doing and where was he getting the money from."
Gore said that teenagers came under the influence of local criminals easily and such criminals also use children to their advantage. The minors usually cannot distinguish between right or wrong and often do not know that what they are doing is illegal.
He said, "Though we have organised a few programmes in the past for such vulnerable children, who mainly live in slum areas, the police could not focus on such preventive or reformative measures on a continuous basis."
Chandulal Shah, honorary secretary of the Juvenile Correctional Home (remand home) in the city said, "Television serials about crime are also having an adverse effect on juveniles. We see a good number of children as small as 10-year-old or 12-years-old who have been caught for thefts or burglaries that were inspired by what they saw on TV."
"Parents should know what their wards are doing, who their friends are and what they are upto outside home. The role of educational institutes is also very important to instil good values among children. Often, class teachers or staff identify the habits of their students which is important. Such children need to be brought on the right track immediately," added Shah.
Last year only one juvenile found involved in a case of murder, this year the city police have found eight such cases since January. Further, 10 juveniles have been found involved in attempt to murder from January 1 to August 31 against only two in all of 2015. Senior officials said that age too played an important role as youngsters in the age group of 14 to 18 were more aggressive and failed to differentiate between good and bad, or legal and illegal.