Nine days after a police escort jeep allegedly crushed a girl's leg and fled, without caring to help, the police are clueless who the culprits were.

With 155 CCTV cameras deployed across the city, it is no less than a miracle that the police have still not been able to locate the culprit vehicle, unless they are deliberately avoiding it.

Authorities at the traffic police station said, on condition of anonymity, that going by CCTV footage it was a police escort vehicle but its registration number is not clear.

On September 1, a speeding white-coloured jeep hit a bike from behind, resulting in one of two passengers riding pillion to fall off the bike at Buddha Marg. The girl landed just in front of the jeep, which crushed her leg and fled without bothering to stop and help.

The men in uniform gave a confused look when asked the status of probe. "The case is still under investigation. There is a CCTV camera at the accident spot and the recorded video will be checked to identify the vehicle. The process is on," SP (central) Chandan Kushwaha saidon Wednesday.

A day after the incident, Kotwali police station SHO Ramesh Kumar Singh had said CCTV footages would be checked and that the case had been referred to the traffic police station in Patna.

Authorities at the traffic police station had a totally different explanation. A sub-inspector rank officer, in charge in the absence of station house officer (SHO) Raja Ram Prasad, said: "CCTV footages have been checked and scanned. We are certain it was a police escort vehicle as per the footage, but the vehicle registration number could not be captured. This could have happened because the jeep was moving at a high speed. We slowed down the footage but even then the number isn't visible. We cannot initiate action unless the vehicle is identified. However, necessary investigations are on to identify the vehicle," the officer said on condition of anonymity.

Sources in the city police headquarters said the police were deliberately trying to water down the case. "It is known that the vehicle was escorting an IPS officer and not a politician. As a result, the probe is still on. Also, the 'no clue' excuse exposes the condition of CCTVs," an officer said.

The men-in-uniform said the cameras, installed in Patna over the past year-and-a-half, were facing teething problems. "The working of many CCTVs depends on the power situation. If the power goes, the cameras stop working, as they do not have proper back-up. There are a few cameras which are wireless by nature and they don't work properly if the climatic conditions are dull. In addition, some cameras are connected through optical fibres and with so many roads dug up, the fibre often snaps. Beltron (Bihar state electronics development corporation limited) is tasked with their maintenance and though they are prompt enough, one can easily say that at any given moment, all cameras in Patna are not functional," the officer said.

Forget night time, on December 13, a man was murdered on a bridge near the GPO Roundabout in broad daylight. Even then, despite being armed with CCTV footage of the bikers, the police have failed to nab them, as the accused could not be identified. Patna SSP Manu Maharaaj said that things would be taken care of. "With elections announced, the police will review and check installed cameras and ensure they are properly working. The whole set-up will be reviewed soon," he said.