GEORGE TOWN: Penang is looking at using drones to monitor the compliance of Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOP).
State Local Government Committee chairman Jagdeep Singh Deo said the drones, currently used to monitor illegal dumping, could be used to assist in monitoring SOP compliance in crowded areas, like bazaars, similar to what is being done in Selangor.
He said the drones would also complement the use of some 1,243 "Eyes in the Sky" (closed-circuit television cameras) in both the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) and Seberang Prai City Council (MBSP) jurisdictions.
"This (the use of drones) is in our plan. We see the drones as an important technology.
"We have discussed this before and will relook at it further," he told newsmen at the Intelligent Operation Centre (IOC) in Komtar here today.
The IOC houses screens with live images captured from more than 1,000 CCTVs on the island.
The IOC will collate data captured from the CCTVs and use it for monitoring and enforcement by the MBPP.
Elaborating, Jagdeep said from the total 1,243 CCTVs, some 1,001 CCTVs were on the island and 242 CCTVs were on the mainland.
Of the total, 553 CCTVs have the latest video analytics features — 528 on the island and 25 on the mainland.
From that, 150 CCTVs on the island and 25 CCTVs on the mainland come with voice features.
Every 30 minutes, an announcement will be made via the speaker affixed to the CCTVs to remind the people to comply with the SOP.
"The CCTVs, with the voice features, are effective in ensuring the people comply with the SOPs.
"Whenever the CCTVs capture the images of a crowd gathering in a certain location, an announcement will be made to remind them to observe physical distancing. If they fail to disperse after three announcements, the MBPP/MBSP officers will go to the ground to take the necessary action.
"With the use of this technology, we have seen a high level of SOP compliance among the people," he added.
According to Jagdeep, the Covid-19 number speaks for itself.
"We have to be wary of the current situation. We cannot take our battle against Covid-19 lightly," he added. - NST
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