Beware of the chor colonies!

<div class="section1"><div class="Normal"><span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Cops have unearthed quite a few of them in the very heart of the city</span><br /><br />You have heard of gangs of robbers. But have you ever imagined there could be colonies of thieves in the very heart of the city? Yet, that''s the fact. About 8-10 gangs of robbers from outside Kolkata have set up small colonies in various parts of the city.Going by the number of thefts at mobile phone showrooms in the last few months, Kolkata police officials have actually tracked down the gangs to villages of thieves in the Jharkhand-Rajmahal belt. From time to time, these villagers cross over for specific jobs and during their stay, set up temporary colonies in the city.<br /><br />"We were amazed to find entire villages who live on stealing mobiles as well as cash. Most of them come from the Jharkhand-Rajmahal belt. These gangs include a number of women who have earlier worked in dance bars in Mumbai. These gangs come down here in turns and set up base, take the booty and then go back," said ZA Rahman, inspector-in-charge (burglary), detective department, Lalbazar. <br /><br />In Kolkata, these gangs live in areas around the Howrah and Sealdah stations. Centrally-located areas like New Market are also their favourites. According to the police, in each of the four to five small territories which these thieves set up within the city, there are not more than 20 to 25 members. For safety reasons, they don''t prefer staying in large numbers as that attracts attention easily. Their place of living can range from shanties to even budget hotel rooms near railway stations. In fact, the police says that a particular gang had booked several rooms in a hotel near Howrah station and lived there for a few days. <br /><br />"They survey the particular area and zero-in on the mobile showroom they plan to rob. They study the showroom timings, security arrangements as well as customer traffic for some time. Most often, they break-in at night. They take as many mobile phones as they can along with the cash available in the showroom. After the robbery, they usually don''t spend much time in the city," said Rahman. <br /><br />However, though these gangs have set up base in certain specific areas in Kolkata, the police still find it difficult to trace them. Since there are several gangs operating, there are new faces most of the time. Smart women in the gangs also act as effective covers. But, after a few thefts, the police did track down a member of a Shyampukur-based gang who revealed the Jharkhand angle and took the lid off the colonies. <br /><br />Incidentally, there were three cases of robberies in mobile showrooms during the Pujas this year. The showrooms which were robbed were Shyampukur, Behala, Raja Ram Mohun Sarani and Sova Bazar and the booty as much as Rs 2 lakh at one go. <br /><br />New mobile phones, according to the police, have a huge market in the villages in the Jharkhand belt and are easily sold at a good price. That seems to be the main motive of the gangs targetting mainly mobile phone outlets. Senior police officials also admitted that they have not received much cooperation from either the Bihar or the Jharkhand police in netting these gangs after they leave the state. "They have insisted that their states have not registered a single such case. That makes it difficult for them to pin down on villagers," said Rahman. <br /><span style="" font-style:="" italic="">madhurima.nandy@timesgroup.com</span></div> </div>