Surveillance cameras have proliferated in the streets of Srinagar, the largest city in the Indian-controlled part of the Muslim-majority region of Kashmir, and in other cities, since local authorities ordered shop owners to equip their stores with cameras at their own expense to support the police in monitoring the movements of residents.

The text of the resolution stated that the plan aims to "deter criminals and anti-social and anti-national elements," specifying minimum standards regarding the type of cameras and their capabilities, especially in terms of their range and the use of infrared radiation.

The cameras are supposed to remain on all the time, enabling the police "and any other law enforcement agency" to request what they have recorded over a period of 30 days without a court order.

Violators of these orders, which entered into force last April, will be fined, or they will be imprisoned for a month, which prompted shop owners to spend hundreds of dollars to equip their stores with surveillance cameras.

Agents for the supply of surveillance systems in Srinagar say - to Agence France-Presse - that the standards of these systems will cost each of the Kashmiri stores (which are in the thousands) up to 40,000 rupees ($524).

Because of the frequent power outages in the area, shop owners also have to cover the expense of securing a battery to ensure that recordings are not interrupted.

The authorities ordered shop owners to install cameras with specific specifications and at their own expense (French)

Bilal Ahmed, who runs an ice cream parlor in the main market in Srinagar, says he is "unable to afford the specifications mentioned in the decision amid the decline in sales."

He added that he is waiting to see if others will comply with these orders until he makes his decision, knowing that many have started equipping their shops with cameras to avoid fines and punishment.

"It's a wrong decision. But if that's what they want, the government should cover the cost," said a shop owner in Srinagar, who asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation by the authorities, as he outfitted his shop with a CCTV camera.

The Hindu nationalist government headed by Narendra Modi is facing difficulties in tightening its grip on the Muslim-majority region, despite the campaign it launched in the region three years ago.

In 2019, the Modi government abolished the semi-autonomous region of Jammu and Kashmir, imposed unprecedented restrictions on protest movements and media freedoms, and the authorities suspended thousands of people and cut off the internet from the region for the longest period in the world to prevent any local uprising.

The authorities also imposed a strict security framework that made popular protests almost impossible.

The dispute over Kashmir, between Pakistan and India, began since their independence from Britain in 1947, and three wars erupted between them in 1948, 1965 and 1971, killing nearly 70,000 on both sides.

The people of Kashmir are demanding independence from India or the region's annexation to Pakistan, and Kashmiri armed groups have been fighting Indian forces for more than 3 decades.

human rights criticism

Akar Patel, a former director of Amnesty International in India, says the decision to impose surveillance cameras is a "disturbing development".

He believes that the decision will legitimize "the complete monitoring of civilians' lives, threatening their human right to privacy, freedom of assembly, independence and dignity."

Since the procedures that began in 2019, administrative arrests are widely used to circumvent judicial processes.

A lightning security campaign to search pedestrians in the city of Srinagar (European - Archive)

Hundreds of people, including protesters, opponents and journalists, have been arrested and are currently languishing in Indian prisons, some for many years, often without any charges being brought against them, with many of them deprived of the opportunity to be released on bail.

Among them are 3 students who have been detained for 5 months for supporting Pakistan in a cricket match against India.

Police frequently confiscate Kashmiris' mobile phones to check their activities.

Arrests abound in the area, against the backdrop of spreading criticism of the government on social media platforms, noting that the police finance a large network of civilian informants.

Residents, especially journalists, are often called in to "check their past".

In the event of non-attendance, the authorities may arrest the relatives of the person concerned, pending his appearance.

However, surveillance techniques have become more sophisticated, as security forces are setting up a network of cameras to monitor activities against them.

An official document - seen by the French Press Agency - stated that the network will include 1,100 cameras with the ability to recognize faces, connected to command centers, enabling the police to monitor through a live broadcast.

Despite repeated requests, the authorities did not want to comment on the legality of the decision to equip the shops with surveillance cameras.