While crimes registered under the local and special laws declined in 2020 in South Goa as compared to that of the previous year.
The only addition in 2020 was the booking people for not wearing masks, which was taken up as a drive by the police due to the pandemic. Police booked 37,626 cases in South Goa against people who were found moving around without wearing a mask.
Coming to the other cases, in 2020 police booked 2,11,443 cases under the local and special laws; while in 2019 they had booked 2,15,360 such cases.
In 2020, police booked 370 matka cases and 7 gambling cases in 2020; while during the previous year they had booked 463 matka and 17 other gambling cases. In 2019, 573 persons2020 under the Beggars act; while the police booked 151 people in 2020. The decrease is linked to the conditions during the pandemic.
It would appear that animals too were treated kindly in 2020, as only 3 cases of cruelty to animals were booked; as against the 9 that were booked in 2019. Similarly children too were treated kindly, as only 2 cases were booked under Goa Children’s Act as against the four that were booked the previous year.
Police were quite diligent in ensuring that cleanliness was maintained in public places as they booked 14,805 cases against people found smoking and spitting in public places. Similarly, 12,226 cases were booked against people throwing garbage in public places. Besides that, 6,667 cases were booked under the Cigarettes and Tobacco Products Act.
The police also took trouble to clear roadside nuisance as 2,396 such cases were booked in 2020; while 1,39,389 cases were booked under the Motor Vehicles Act.
The police had to take preventive action in fewer cases in 2020, as compared to 2019 except in getting habitual offenders to execute a good behaviour bond under Section 110 of the Criminal Procedure Code. In this connection, in 2020, 122 persons and in 2019, 127 persons had to sign this bond.
In 2020, under Section 107 of Criminal Procedure Code 1,161 people executed a good behaviour bond; while 289 submitted security for good behaviour under Section 109 of the Criminal Procedure Code. And while the police got orders to remove nuisance in 25 cases under Section 133 of CrPC in 2020; they also issued summons in 42 cases under Section 145 CrPC in cases where a dispute was inevitable.
