Police have pulled up their socks to make sure closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed in banks are in working condition.

The move comes after two back-to-back crimes on bank premises rocked the city.

Patna senior superintendent of police (SSP) Amrit Raj told The Telegraph on Thursday the murder of the head cashier of State Bank of India (Patliputra branch), James Michael Dextus, on June 14 could have been solved if the CCTV cameras in the bank were working effectively.

A private company employee was robbed of Rs 1.25 lakh at Mauryalok Complex on June 20 as soon as he had stepped out of Dena Bank after withdrawing the amount. The officer said in this case too, the cameras in the bank were not working.

Taking the discrepancies into account, Raj said all police station house officers in Patna have been directed to visit the banks under their jurisdiction. They have been asked to check the establishments and whether they have cameras installed. Moreover, if they are working or not.

“The banks have to ensure that the cameras on their premises are working and have the recording facility. Though the police cannot enforce it on the banks, all the SHOs have been directed to go and check whether the banks are equipped with proper CCTV cameras. If not, the police will be requesting the seniors of the banks to install it without delay. The facility can help the cops,” he said.

“Investigations could have been easier and there could have been breakthroughs by this time if the CCTV cameras were in a working condition. The cameras could have easily made a difference. The cameras didn’t record anything at the SBI Patliputra branch,” he said. The SSP, however, added that the police have got “positive” leads in the case.

Raj added: “In the June 20 incident, the police found that one person followed the victim into the bank and was stalking him when the victim was withdrawing the money. The branch is located at Mauryalok Complex and as soon as the victim stepped out of the bank two men attacked him. The police checked the CCTV cameras but they were found to be defunct. This is a major cause of concern.”