Tourism police unit personnel will now patrol round-the-clock along the tourist belt in Batu Ferringhi, where many of the big hotels are located, to ensure the safety of tourists.

State police chief Datuk Othman Talib said Saturday the area 58 sq km area was divided into two sectors and would have four beat bases and 36 checkpoints.

They will patrol the tourist belt stretching from the Ferringhi Beach Hotel to the Northam Hotel which is known for its tourist attractions and where many big hotels are located, he said.

He told reporters this after the launch of the Tourism Police Unit by state Tourism, Culture, Arts and Women Development Committee chairman Datuk Kee Phaik Cheen, here.

Othman said the unit had 40 members, including seven women, who would serve round-the-clock instead of only at certain times as was the practice previously.

This would overcome weaknesses like overlapping duties which was a waste of manpower, he said, adding that the unit would be under the north-east district police chief.

He said that in future, if the state had more police personnel, the unit would be beefed up so that personnel could be stationed at airports, ports and ferry terminals which were also entry points for tourists.

In his speech, he said that 190 snatch thefts were reported in the north-east district coastal area last year but the number dropped to 162 cases this year as a result of random roadblocks by the police.

He said 73 of the cases reported between January and August last year involved foreign tourists while the number for the corresponding period this year was 47.

Meanwhile, Kee said that the state government would conduct language training in English, French, German and Italian as well as courses and workshops for members of the tourism police unit to enable them to communicate with foreign tourists.