LUCKNOW, Nov. 7 -- Dealing a blow to women's safety and urban surveillance in the state capital, over 1,000 AI-enabled Safe City cameras have gone offline again, this time for more than five days, leaving the entire monitoring network crippled. The outage occurred after the private service provider suspended operations due to unpaid dues of around Rs 8.43 crore pending with the Lucknow Smart City Limited (LSCL). According to people familiar with the matter, these cameras have been offline from November 1 till date. The breakdown has also affected around 150 city buses equipped with CCTV cameras and panic buttons, a crucial component designed to ensure women's security during transit. As a result, both street and transport surveillance systems across Lucknow have been rendered non-functional since last week. When contacted, Lucknow divisional commissioner Vijay Vishwas Pant, who is chairman of Lucknow Smart City Project, said, "The payment has to be approved from a concerned department for which I would ask them to speed up the formalities and release the payment as soon as possible." A senior official confirmed to Hindustan Times that the private agency supplying the network services to Safe City disconnected the network after multiple reminders to Smart City over clearing the pending dues. "The vendors providing services to the private agency, which is managing the safe city project, had not received payments despite repeated assurances by officials. This time, they stopped the network entirely," the official said. The project, launched under the Nirbhaya Fund Scheme with a 60:40 funding model between the central and state governments, was meant to make Lucknow a model "safe city" through real-time monitoring, facial recognition, and automated alerts. However, the repeated disruptions due to financial delays have severely undermined its objectives. An on-ground visit by HT to the Safe City Command Centre at 6:17 pm on Wednesday revealed a nearly deserted control room with all camera feeds showing "offline" status. Only two staffers were present at their desks. One of them, on condition of anonymity, said, "The operator cut the network five days ago. Since then, none of the cameras or bus feeds are functional." The command centre, which used to relay alerts to the police and monitor crime-prone zones, has now turned into a silent hub. Officials admitted that the lack of camera access has crippled real-time monitoring, including automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) and facial detection functions crucial to crime tracking. This is not the first time the Safe City system has faced an outage. Records show that in August, September and October 2025, services were disrupted multiple times over similar payment issues. Each time, the vendor temporarily restored the network after verbal assurances from officials. When HT highlighted the issue in August, AK Singh, GM (Projects), Lucknow Smart City, had said, "We have sufficient money in the Smart City account. Payments will be released once we get approval from the home department." Despite three months passing, dues remain pending and the system stands paralysed again. A person familiar with the matter revealed on Thursday that the file is stuck somewhere. Officials admitted that the outage has directly affected crime detection, traffic management, and women's safety initiatives. "These cameras send live alerts to the control room and nearby police stations in case of harassment or abnormal activity. Now none of that is happening," said an insider. According to LSCL data, the Safe City cameras had helped the police solve over 1,600 crime-related cases in the past year, including chain snatching, hit-and-run cases, and crimes against women. With the system offline, officials fear delayed response in emergencies and a spike in street crimes. The cameras were strategically installed at over 200 locations, including Balu Adda, Lalbagh, Shankar Crossing, Naza Road, Shaheed Path, Mohanlalganj, and Nagram, to cover sensitive and high-footfall areas. Each camera is AI-enabled and connected to a central database designed to alert police in real-time during suspicious movements. Lucknow Smart City Limited, chaired by the divisional commissioner, with the Municipal Commissioner as its CEO, oversees the Lucknow Smart City project. However, repeated financial lapses and lack of coordination between departments have triggered concern. Those in the know of things said that despite several reminders from the vendor between August and October, no formal payment was processed. The network provider finally halted the system last week. "The project's credibility is now at stake. It was meant to ensure women's safety, but the system is collapsing due to administrative negligence," said a senior official familiar with the project. Residents expressed concern over the outage, particularly women commuters who rely on the city's safety infrastructure. "If these cameras don't work, what's the meaning of a Safe City? Women's safety cannot depend on bureaucracy's pace," said Apoorva Bhargava, a resident of Hazratganj locality....