The police have launched a crackdown on criminal gangs in the Meerut zone in Uttar Pradesh, which, according to an estimate, has witnessed more killings than militancy-affected Jammu and Kashmir since January last year.
 
A total of 1,758 murders were reported in seven districts of the zone between January 2002 and September 21 this year.

In the same period, 1364 prople were killed in Jammu and Kashmir, as per statistics compiled by the state police department.

Inspector General of Police, Meerut Zone, Rajesh Tiwari, said police chiefs of all seven districts have been instructed to identify gangs and move against them.

Expressing concern over frequent transfers of police officials in the state, he said it is adversely affecting efforts to check the crime rate.

On police-criminal nexus, Senior Superintendent of Police, Ghaziabad, Jai Narain Singh, said the guilty policemen will not be spared.

More reports from Uttar Pradesh