Over 500 touts working round Indira Gandhi Worldwide (IGI) airport in Delhi have been arrested in 2024 for duping flyers on the pretext of unauthorised providers, stated the Delhi Police.
The arrests that have been made beneath Delhi Prevention of Touting and Malpractices in opposition to Vacationers Act noticed a soar of 48 per cent from final yr, in response to the info shared by the Delhi Police.
The information stated that 540 touts have been arrested and 254 automobiles used as unlawful taxis have been seized as in opposition to the 264 arrests and 96 automobile seizures in 2023.
“Touts typically prey on unsuspecting passengers, notably at evening, posing as pre-paid taxi drivers and providing false guarantees of cheaper providers. These misleading practices depart passengers weak to harassment, monetary exploitation, and security dangers,” stated Usha Rangnani, Deputy Commissioner of Police (IGI).
Of the arrested, 373 are from Delhi, 107 from Uttar Pradesh, 32 from Haryana and 11 from Bihar. The others arrested hail from Rajasthan, Punjab, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand and Sikkim. The police made 41 preventive arrests of repeat offenders in 2024, compared to zero in 2023, the info stated.
Circumstances of foreigners getting duped
The touts eye flyers who arrive late at evening, together with international nationals, and purvey cheaper providers compared to customary market charges, the police stated.
In one of many main circumstances of the yr, a international nationwide was duped of Rs 98,700 by a tout promising him to take to Varanasi.
“The tout falsely knowledgeable the passenger that Delhi was witnessing heavy protests, inflicting all lodges and public transport to close down. The touts and his three associates promised to make various preparations for them,” DCP Rangnani stated.
Nevertheless, the touts charged the bank card of the international nationwide a whopping Rs 98,700 to take him to Varanasi after which deserted him halfway. “Inside 24 hours, the police apprehended 4 accused individuals, together with the mastermind Amit Malhotra. Additional, they froze the suspects’ financial institution accounts, making certain the restoration of the sufferer’s hard-earned cash,” stated DCP Rangnani.
One other international nationwide was duped on his first journey to Delhi by touts at IGI airport, after he was charged Rs 2,500 for a taxi service to C R Park. Each accused touts have been arrested inside a number of hours of the incident, the police stated.
“Around the clock anti-tout groups, with police personnel in plain garments, joint operations with RAXA (Airport Safety Group) and DIAL (Delhi Worldwide Airport Restricted) and deployment of QRTs (Fast Response Groups) are a few of the measures we’ve taken to regulate the menace of touting close to IGI airport,” DCP Rangnani stated.
