Beijing police have installed about 95,000 cameras to protect residences from criminals, Oriental Morning Post reported today.

"We have spent 86 million yuan (US$10.63 million) this year," said a senior officer of the Beijing Public Security Bureau. More than 60 percent of the residences have been equipped with monitoring systems, the Post said.

The police have also formed 735 civilian teams with more than 31,000 members to patrol residences 24 hours a day.

Next year, two-policeman teams will patrol areas with a high incidence of criminals in hours when crimes are likely to happen, the newspaper said.

Beijing police have also encouraged people to use professional companies for car-parking services. The number of cars stolen in Beijing decreased rapidly this year, the newspaper said.

(Shanghai Daily December 15, 2005)