Rabale Police successfully traced and recovered 163 lost and stolen mobile phones worth Rs 25.10 lakh and returned them to their rightful owners in a formal event on Monday. The phones were handed over by Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Adinath Budhwant of the Vashi Division.

To aid in tracking lost mobile phones, the Central Government has implemented the CEIR (Central Equipment Identity Register) portal. Following instructions from senior officials, Rabale Police used the portal to track and recover the missing devices. Senior Police Inspector Balkrishna Sawant from Rabale Police Station had directed his team to review complaints of lost and stolen mobile phones through the CEIR portal and initiate a search operation.

“Using the data from CEIR, we contacted the mobile phone users who were using the stolen or missing phones. We called them and asked them to return the mobile phone or a legal proceeding would be initiated. Accordingly many came to us and returned and in some cases we have travelled to various places in Maharashtra, Karnataka and also Hyderabad to recover the phone,” Sawant said.

Under the guidance of Assistant Police Inspector Avinash Palde, a special investigation team, including Assistant Police Sub-Inspector Arun Pawar, started working on tracing the missing phones. Using technical expertise and data from the CEIR portal, the team successfully recovered the devices. “These phones were stolen or missing since last three to four years. Despite the challenge of travelling to other state, we made tireless efforts and, with the assistance of local police in certain areas, managed to retrieve the devices,” Sawant added.

On Monday, the 163 recovered mobile phones, valued at Rs 25.10 lakh, were returned to their owners at the Rabale Police Station. During the handing over ceremony of the mobile phones, the police also provided guidance to citizens on cybersecurity and mobile safety, urging them to take necessary precautions to prevent future losses.