Ranchi, Oct 17

Gold and diamond jewellry worth Rs.12.25 crore, the assessment of which was completed Wednesday, was stolen in a daring break-in from a shop, police officials said.

A group of unidentified people looted Rs.12.25 crore worth gold and diamond jewellry from Aanand Jewellers shop here, leaving Jharkhand traders in shock.

The shop was closed Saturday and Sunday for Durga Puja festivities. When it reopened Tuesday, the shop owner was shocked to find that thieves had cleaned it out of the gold and diamond jewellries.

The thieves got inside the shop by cutting the grills and besides the loot also took away the CCTV cameras and Data Base Recorder (DBR), police said.

"This is a shocking incident. We met the chief minister in the past and requested to increase force deployment in the city. Criminals have gone hi-tech and police seem unable to match them," Vikas Singh, president of Federation of Jharkhand Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FJCCI), told IANS.

Rabi Bhatt, secretary of the Jharkhand Petroleum Association and a member of FJCCI, said: "When traders are not safe in Ranchi, what could be expected from other parts of the state? This gold jewellry theft is one of the biggest in the country."

"This is not an isolated incident. Such incidents are reported on regular basis in Ranchi. The state government should act to create confidence among the traders of the state," he added.

Unidentified robbers looted Rs.2.40 crore worth gold from Muthut Finance office in Jamshedpur town early this month.

By:IANS