Securing a shop in Aminabad, Hazratganj or Chowk

Pehredar started in 2010 fitting cameras in Aminabad shops, and the city’s old markets are still a large part of our work. Securing a shop in Aminabad, Chowk, Nakhas or the lanes behind Hazratganj is quite different from securing a house or an office. Here is what we have learnt.

The counter is the heart of it. Most disputes and losses in a busy shop happen at the cash counter, not at night. We place one camera above and slightly behind the counter so that it sees the cash drawer, the customer’s hands and the bills, and another facing customers as they enter. Mount them high enough that staff and customers cannot knock them in a crowd.

The shutter is the second. Many shops share walls and have a single shutter onto the street, often with a staircase to a godown above. A camera inside, facing the shutter, records anyone who tries to force it. A small wireless alarm with a vibration sensor on the shutter can alert your phone at night.

The third is power and wiring. Old markets have tangled overhead cables and long power cuts. We put the recorder and a UPS in a locked cabinet, away from the shop floor, and run our cables in conduit separate from the electrical lines. Finally, think about the street. A camera covering the pavement in front of your shop often helps your neighbours as much as you. Talk to them; many market associations now share the cost of a few street-facing cameras.