Beginning April 15, the city police made arrangement for etching the registration number of vehicles on handle-bars, engines, and wheel rims at 24 police chowkies for just Rs 8. At the same time, all details of the vehicle owner, including name, address, phone number, type of vehicle, registration number, chassis number, colour etc are fed into a computer. The motorist is given a sticker which reads: ``WARNING: This vehicle has been registered with the Surat city police control room.'' The drive is on for a fortnight. At present the police has restricted itself to registering only two-wheelers. Later, it will be the turn of other vehicles.

Says Vipul Vijoy, the additional commissioner of police in charge of the drive, ``It's new and definitely the first of its kind in the state and so naturally people are going to be a little apprehensive in the beginning.''

Some chowkies are doing far better than others. While the drive has attracted a steady flow of vehicles at Athwa Chowky, hardly 10 vehicles arrive daily at some others. In the first seven days of the drive 792 vehicles were registered.

Police officers do not claim that the system is a guarantee against auto-theft. ``But tracing a stolen vehicle will be far easier. And since the chances of detection are higher, criminals will be deterred to some extent,'' says an officer.

What prompted the drive? The high incidence of auto-theft -- two to five vehicles are reported stolen daily in Surat. In the last three days, nine vehicles were stolen. Most thefts are reported from the Ring Road, Varachha, Katargam, Kapodara, and Athwa Lines areas. And thieves seem prefer motorcycles, specifically Hero Hondas, probably because of their high resale value.

Elaborating on how the drive will help, Vijoy explained that if the registration number was not changed by the thief, the vehicle owner would be easily traced on feeding the etched registration number into a police computer. If the thief did manage to change the etched numbers, the chassis number provided by the owner would help police trace it. ``Until now, it was a hit-or-miss sort of situation. Now detection will be lot more faster,'' he says.

Vijoy also sounds a warning: ``People ought to make use of this system for their own good. From May 1, police will intercept vehicles and demand proof that it belongs to the rider''.