400 phones traced through CEIR; devices returned to rightful owners
VIJAYAWADA: In a major relief to mobile-phone users in Krishna district, the Krishna District Police recovered and returned 400 lost and stolen mobile phones worth nearly ₹60 lakh to their rightful owners within a period of three months.
The recovered phones were handed over to the owners during a special programme held at the Krishna District Police Office. Krishna District Superintendent of Police V. Vidyasagar Naidu handed over the recovered devices to the beneficiaries.
🔍 How did police recover the phones?
According to the police, a dedicated team working under the Crime and Criminal Tracking System (CCS), in coordination with IT experts, used the Central Equipment Identity Register (CEIR) to trace the missing devices.
The CEIR system uses the phone’s IMEI number, which is a unique identification number assigned to a mobile device. Once a missing phone is reported and its IMEI is registered, police and telecom networks can use the system to help trace the device.
📊 400 phones recovered from different areas
The recovery was carried out by three CCS units in Krishna district:
| Police Unit | Phones Recovered |
|---|---|
| Gudivada CCS | 237 |
| Machilipatnam CCS | 100 |
| Penamaluru CCS | 63 |
| Total | 400 |
Gudivada CCS accounted for the largest share, recovering 237 phones, followed by Machilipatnam CCS with 100 and Penamaluru CCS with 63.
👮 SP urges people to use CEIR
SP V. Vidyasagar Naidu advised people to immediately report a missing or stolen mobile phone to the police and register it through the CEIR portal.
He said mobile phones now contain important personal, financial, educational and business information, making quick reporting important when a device is lost or stolen.
The official CEIR system allows users to block a lost or stolen phone’s IMEI. Once successfully blocked, the handset cannot be used on mobile networks across India, while the blocking does not prevent police from tracking the device.
📱 Importance of IMEI tracking
Every mobile phone has an IMEI number, which can normally be displayed by dialling *#06#. The CEIR system uses these device identifiers to help telecom operators and law-enforcement agencies identify and block lost or stolen handsets.
The Krishna Police recovery operation demonstrates how technology-assisted policing can help citizens recover valuable devices that might otherwise remain permanently lost.
The beneficiaries who received their phones back expressed their gratitude to the district police. According to the report, several of the recovered phones contained important personal and official data, making their recovery particularly valuable to the owners.
