A SOUTH SIDE area is to see an enhanced police presence during the festive period.

The news comes as Police Scotland reports the most recent crime figures for Govanhill show a fall in the number of incidents.

Senior officers said a four week intensive police operation will be in place to counter three types of crime.

Chief Inspector Ross Allan announced the plan at the Govanhill Regeneration Group meeting.

He said: "The overarching intention of the operation is to keep people safe, make Govanhill a safe place to visit and make it a welcoming environment."

Mr Allan, Police Scotland's Area Commander for Glasgow South East, said a similar plan run the past two years had seen successes.

This year, the enhanced festive policing plan will run from December 3 until January 5.

It will see additional officers on the streets at weekends as well as high visibility foot patrols throughout the week.

The plan is designed to tackle three types of crime: retail crime, crimes in licensed premises, and domestic housebreakings.

Mr Allan said there will be high visibility foot patrols at retail areas in Govanhill.

Shop staff will be offered training in how to deter crime and shops will be visited by officers.

Working with other agencies, such as Glasgow City Council, police will carry out visits to licensed premises and will target anti-social behaviour.

Householders in the area will also be given safety advice for their homes and additional foot patrols will be carried out around residential properties.

Meanwhile, the most recent crime figures for the past six months show a decline in incidents.

From April 1 to October 31, numbers from Police Scotland show:

*Serious assaults are down by 13 per cent

*Common assaults are down by 21 per cent and

*Domestic housebreaking is down by 17 per cent

As told in the Evening Times last week, a year-long investigation by the National Child Abuse Investigation Unit in Govanhill has concluded.

Specialist officers were called in after media reports of Roma parents selling their children on the streets.

No evidence of this was found.