Kolkata: As cybercrimes and cyber threats surge across the city, Kolkata Police has begun planning "out-of-the-box" strategies to counter the menace. Besides rapidly modernizing itself and creating avenues to train more policemen with sophisticated modes of investigation, Lalbazar is also considering establishing a cybercrime police station in each of its 10 divisions.Although the exact launch date for these cyber stations is not yet determined, senior cops have initially agreed on the importance of creating these stations. Sources indicate that the process of identifying suitable buildings or locations for these stations in each division has already begun. Currently, Kolkata Police has only one cybercrime police station, located centrally at Lalbazar. Additionally, each division has a separate cyber unit that assists in solving various crimes and recovering mobile phones under the leadership of the divisional DCP."There is no final decision yet on the role of these cyber units once the new cyber stations are established in each division. In all likelihood, these units will be expanded into full-fledged police stations. This will also solve the problem of lodging FIRs with local police stations, even as the cyber cell of the division handles the probe, leading to victims being forced to run around from one unit to another once essential recoveries are made," said a senior cop.

Since this will entail huge manpower, the expansion is likely to occur in phases once the proposal is placed formally before the state administration and gets the necessary go-ahead, said the officers. Ever since Manoj Verma took charge as the commissioner of Kolkata, he has put a stronger emphasis on the cybercrime department, trying to return the duped amounts quickly and break the organised rackets.