Lucknow, March 18 -- : The Uttar Pradesh Police's in-house digital platform "Yaksh" is emerging as a key tool in technology-driven policing, aiding both real-time crime detection and long-pending investigations, officials said on Tuesday in a press note shared with the media. In two recent cases, police in Firozabad and Rae Bareli used the app to bust a vehicle theft gang and arrest an absconding accused in a decade-old murder case. Officials said the Yaksh app has been positioned as a critical component of the state's push for smart policing, aligning with chief minister Yogi Adityanath's emphasis on technology-enabled governance. In Firozabad, police used Yaksh's photo-matching feature to arrest an accused who had been evading arrest for nearly a decade in a murder case registered in 2016 under Section 302 IPC. Following the directions of Firozabad SSP Saurabh Dixit, the Linepar police verified the suspect through the app on March 7. Though the accused attempted to conceal his identity by giving a false name, the app's facial recognition system confirmed him as Sanoj, son of Pancham Singh. He was arrested on March 15, and produced before the court. Similarly, Rae Bareli police busted an active vehicle-lifting gang using the app's integrated surveillance and analytics features. The case originated on February 16 when an SUV was reported stolen from the Bachhrawan area. Acting under the supervision of SP Ravi Kumar, the investigation team used Yaksh to quickly map CCTV cameras near the crime scene and analyse footage. Despite unclear visuals, inputs were cross-verified with local intelligence networks. The digital trail suggested links to suspects from Mau district. Continuous monitoring and data correlation led to the identification of an accused named Pradeep and his associates. On March 16, police arrested the gang members from Bachhrawan and recovered five stolen vehicles - two Scorpios, two Ertigas and one Kia car - along with a hatchback car used in the crime. Officials said the Yaksh app enables quick identification of CCTV cameras near crime scenes, suspect verification, and real-time location tracking, significantly improving investigation speed and accuracy. The application was formally launched during a "Police Manthan" programme and is now being scaled up across districts....