LAHORE: The Punjab Police have finalised a province-wide security plan for the religious gatherings, rallies and processions being held to mark 12th Rabi-ul-Awwal and the celebrations of Eid Milad-un-Nabi (PBUH), with more than 55,000 officers and personnel set to be deployed from the provincial capital down to the district level.
According to an official statement issued by the Punjab Police spokesperson, the deployment will cover 1,436 Milad-un-Nabi (PBUH) gatherings and 2,479 processions across Punjab. In Lahore alone, 216 processions and 111 Milad gatherings are scheduled, for which more than 8,000 officers, personnel and volunteers will perform security duties.
Inspector General of Police Punjab Abdul Kareem said that security would remain on high alert throughout the Eid Milad-un-Nabi (PBUH) programmes, and that strict surveillance would be maintained over miscreants and anti-state elements.
The IG Punjab directed that strict security arrangements in line with the standard operating procedures be ensured for every procession, rally and gathering held on 12th Rabi-ul-Awwal, with additional personnel posted at locations designated as sensitive. The instruction reflects a long-standing approach in Punjab policing, where deployment strength is calibrated route by route rather than applied uniformly, allowing thinner cover on quieter neighbourhood routes and heavier layering where large crowds converge.
Gatherings and rallies are to be monitored with the assistance of Safe City cameras, according to the statement. IG Abdul Kareem further directed all Regional Police Officers, City Police Officers and District Police Officers to personally supervise the arrangements for 12th Rabi-ul-Awwal, adding that moment-by-moment monitoring of every programme should be ensured through control rooms.
The reliance on centralised camera feeds and live control room supervision has become a defining feature of how Punjab manages mass religious congregations, shortening the gap between an incident being spotted and a response being dispatched — a difference that matters most on congested inner-city routes where vehicle access is limited.
The IG Punjab also instructed that the consultation and suggestions of peace committees, religious scholars and community leaders be taken into account while the security order is being prepared.
That consultative element carries particular weight ahead of Rabi-ul-Awwal, when processions from different organising bodies frequently share overlapping routes and timings. Early coordination with organisers and local ulema allows route sequencing, timing adjustments and diversion plans to be settled in advance rather than negotiated on the day.
The Punjab Police spokesperson stated that teams from the Police, Traffic Police, Elite Force, Special Branch and the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) would assist in the security arrangements, and that all conventional and modern policing resources would be utilised for the protection of gatherings, processions and rallies.
The layered structure assigns distinct roles: district police handle cordons and route management, Traffic Police manage diversions around procession corridors, the Elite Force provides rapid response, while Special Branch and CTD focus on intelligence collection and threat assessment.
For residents of Lahore and other major districts, the scale of the deployment points to significant traffic diversions and route closures around procession corridors on 12th Rabi-ul-Awwal. Commuters are advised to plan travel around announced routes and follow instructions issued by Traffic Police on the day.
The arrangements also set an operational benchmark for the remainder of the religious calendar, with the coordination model between district police, specialised units and community stakeholders likely to be carried forward into subsequent large-scale gatherings.
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