Automobile thefts in the city have increased to 330 per lakh vehicles this year from 272 in 2014.

Till May 31 this year, 11,712 vehicle thefts were reported against 8,377 cases in the corresponding period in 2014.

Among the stolen vehicles, 5,632 were two-wheelers, 2,411 cars and 399 other vehicles, said the city government in its reply to a question in the Delhi Assembly.

Barely 10 per cent of the stolen vehicles were recovered and 1,101 auto-lifters arrested this year. Motor vehicle thefts accounted for around 16 per cent of total IPC cases registered in Delhi, as per the Delhi government.

“The acute shortage of parking space and the general practice of parking vehicles on the roadsides, and unwillingness of a majority of motor vehicle owners to install anti-auto theft equipment are major contributing factors of motor vehicle thefts,” the government’s submission in Assembly said.

Going by the last 10 years’ data, the rate at which vehicles are being stolen in the city is at its highest. Police attribute the surge in number of automobile thefts to increase in reporting of such cases.

“After the launch of the Motor Vehicle Theft app, many from Gurgaon, Noida and Ghaziabad are registering online FIRs with us,” a senior police officer said.
“FIR is prerequisite for claiming an insurance money.”

Delhi Police had launched the web-based “Motor Vehicle Theft Application” in April to deal exclusively with cases of motor vehicle theft.

A person can register his FIR related to the loss of his vehicle through this app from anywhere in the world. The digital system searches for the stolen vehicle each day from the data of the recovered ones.

But Delhi Police spokesperson Rajan Bhagat said vehicle theft has become a lucrative business for criminals.

“It is pure economics. The vehicles are easy to steal and dispose. Criminals do not fear the risk of leaving much evidence. No fingerprint or image is left behind,” Bhagat told Deccan Herald.