Andhra Pradesh CID Police Lead India in Recovering Lost Mobile Phones
The Andhra Pradesh CID police have achieved a major success. They now hold the top spot in India for recovering lost and stolen mobile phones, with a recovery rate of 77.98%—the highest in the country.
This success puts them ahead of other southern states like Karnataka, Maharashtra, and even Delhi. Since the launch of the Central Equipment Identity Register (CEIR) portal, police in the state have recovered and returned a total of 78,114 mobile phones to their rightful owners, as of May 19.
Among all locations, the Hyderabad Commissionerate saw the most recoveries with 11,879 phones returned. Cyberabad followed with 10,385 phones, and Rachakonda recovered 8,681 phones.
The CEIR portal has become the key tool in tracking and blocking stolen devices. Every police unit across the state now uses it to monitor complaints and follow up with daily tracking reports.
The Department of Telecommunications first introduced the CEIR system on September 5, 2022, as a trial in select southern states. However, Andhra Pradesh rolled it out later, on April 19, 2023.
Despite the late start, Andhra Pradesh has outperformed other regions. The portal is now active in 780 police stations covering 31 policing units across the state. Residents can report lost phones directly at these stations, where officers use CEIR user IDs to block lost devices and begin tracing them immediately.
Thanks to the strong coordination between state police units and the CEIR system, more mobile phone owners are getting their devices back quickly and efficiently.
