LAHORE: Punjab’s provincial Apex Committee on Tuesday reviewed the overall law and order situation and security arrangements across the province, with Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif telling the meeting that a decline in street crime had improved the public’s sense of security and that there was no room for hooliganism, land grabbing or mafias in Punjab.
According to an official statement issued after the meeting, the committee, which the chief minister chaired, was briefed by officials on measures being taken to protect lives and property. The Lahore Corps Commander Lt-Gen Syed Fayyaz Hussain Shah also attended the session, which covered counter-terrorism operations, a development plan for the province’s riverine areas, and steps to ensure the exit of illegally residing foreign nationals from Punjab.
The chief minister further disclosed that 718 police personnel had been dismissed from service for involvement in corruption, a figure that signals the government’s intent to pair tougher security measures with internal accountability in the force.
The meeting expressed satisfaction over coordination among security agencies and termed the establishment of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Hub at the Provincial Intelligence Fusion and Threat Assessment Centre (PIFTAC) an important step towards timely sharing of information.
PIFTAC and the AI Hub were launched earlier this month to strengthen threat assessment and coordination among security agencies. The review comes weeks after the province imposed Section 144 amid mounting terror alerts, and as the Counter Terrorism Department continues its intelligence-based operations across Punjab.
The chief minister welcomed successes in ongoing operations against terrorists and praised the Pakistan Army’s professional capabilities in operations against what the government refers to as Fitna al-Hindustan. Security forces have reported a string of such operations in recent weeks, including an intelligence-based operation in Kalat.
The meeting paid tribute to Captain Abu Zarr Farooq, Lt Shiras Babar and other personnel martyred during Operation Zarb-i-Labbaik, and offered Fateha for the departed souls. The Lahore Corps Commander appreciated the performance of the relevant institutions and termed it satisfactory.
A significant part of the briefing focused on the riverine belt, low-lying tracts along the province’s rivers that have long been regarded as difficult terrain for law enforcement. The committee was informed that 93 projects were being initiated in these areas to improve social infrastructure.
Smart police stations and police check posts would also be set up in the riverine areas, while a steel bridge costing Rs620 million would be constructed. Skill-development programmes would be launched to create employment opportunities for local residents.
Praising institutions working for peace in the area, the chief minister said a development package of more than Rs30 billion was being implemented there for health, education and security. She also welcomed the organisation of a major cricket tournament in the area, describing the participation of the public and officials as encouraging. Continued monitoring and vigilance, she said, were being maintained in the riverine belt.
The meeting was further informed that steps were being taken to ensure the exit of illegally residing foreign nationals from Punjab. The province has been running a sustained repatriation effort, as The Lahore Times has previously reported on Punjab’s deportation drive.
Speaking at the meeting, the chief minister said all institutions in Punjab were working in coordination, and that maintaining law and order required setting personal interests aside. The 718 dismissals she cited follow a wider provincial campaign, including an anti-corruption helpline and secret cell and disciplinary action against hundreds of police personnel.
She credited proactive policing with a continued decline in crime and said the police were being provided with necessary resources, including technology. Police personnel were being equipped with body-worn cameras, while the Safe City system had been expanded across Punjab. A closer look at the capital’s crime data shows 76% decline in Lahore’s street crime.
She stressed that there should be no gap in security arrangements and underlined the need for preventive measures. Despite various challenges, she said, all possible steps were being taken to protect the public, and the overall law and order situation in Punjab remained encouraging despite ongoing operations.
The chief minister said Punjab and its people paid tribute to the armed forces and praised the leadership of the Field Marshal. All institutions, she said, were working together against terrorism, adding that Operation Bunyan-un-Marsoos had enhanced Pakistan’s image internationally.
She also linked security with the cost of living, saying the regional situation had increased the need to protect people from inflation and economic difficulties, and that the government was focusing on this alongside security measures. The remarks come as households continue to grapple with rising prices in Lahore, and follow the chief minister’s welcome of the federal government’s relief package for the public.
How quickly these plans move from the briefing room to the ground, and whether falling crime figures hold, will be the key tests of the Apex Committee’s agenda in the months ahead.
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