Odisha Govt Issues Special Phone Number ‘1930’ To Curb Cyber Crime

Bhubaneswar: Intensifying its drive against rising cyber crime in the state, the Odisha government has launched a special phone number ‘1930’ for victims as well as common people.

Sources said the move was taken in view of increasing number of cyber crime cases pertaining to financial offence and sex abuse on women and children. Awareness campaigns will be organised for the purpose.

Any unlawful act involving use of computer, communication device or computer network to commit or facilitate the commission of a crime must be checked, according to Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra.

The government plans to deploy 34 vehicles called ‘Sachetanata Rath’ equipped with audio and visual materials across the state to create awareness among the people about cyber crime.

Plans are afoot to include elderly people, students, Asha and Anganwadi workers and members of self-help groups (SHGs) in the drive against cyber crime.

People will be mad e aware to verify the authenticity before carrying out a financial transaction, avoid friendship with unknown people and not to click on links, SMSs and Apps received from suspicious sources.

While symposia and seminars will be conducted regularly, quiz, debates and essay competitions will to be organised at the school level. Odisha is the first State in the country to launch such anti-cyber crime campaigns, Mahapatra said.

As per statistics, 1485 cyber crime cases were registered in Odisha in 2019, 1931 cases in 2020 and 2037 cases in 2021 during the same period. On the other hand, 3402 petitions were received in the State in 2022 and 7700 petitions in 2022 respectively through cyber help desks.