RECORDER REPORT

KARACHI: Sindh home minister Sohail Anwer Siyal has said that while it was not an ideal situation in Karachi in terms of the law and order situation, the overall situation has substantially improved compared to what it had been before 2007 and 2013.

Speaking at a meeting at the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, he said that while initiating Karachi operation in 2013, the federal government had committed to bear 50 percent of the expenditure on this crucial operation. But not a single penny was provided and the entire expenditure was borne by the Sindh government from its own financial resources.

Sohail Siyal said that the improvement in the law and order situation can be gauged from the descending CPLC figures which, compared with the previous figures, reveal that the graphs of targeted killings, terrorism, kidnapping for ransom, extortion, robberies and other crimes have descended sharply.

“But we haven’t achieved what we desired to achieve,” he admitted, saying that it is not only for the PPP leadership and the Sindh government, but also for the top officials of the police, the Rangers and the Army to restore complete peace and tranquility in Karachi and in other parts of Sindh.

Referring to the visits of the leader of the Dawoodi Bohra community and Prince Karim Aga Khan to Karachi, he said that visits by such dignitaries were a testimony to the improved security situation in the city.

He said it was essential that the business community, which is the backbone of the country’s economy, operates in a secure and peaceful atmosphere and any problem suffered by the business community will have a deep impact on the Pakistan’s overall economic performance. He said that this is the basic reason why the Sindh government takes up and resolves problems facing the business community.

Commenting on the concerns expressed by the president of the KCCI over the continuing street crimes, Sohail Siyal explained that during the Karachi Operation the law enforcing agencies had focused on crimes such as terrorism, targeted killings, extortion and kidnappings. But now they will pay special attention to the street crimes in the city, he added.

He said that in the past three years 6,000 police officers have been recruited, together with 3,000 traffic police officers. After completing the required training, a number of these officers have been deployed at some of the busiest roads to handle the traffic flow. The situation will improve still further when all the remaining traffic police officers complete their training and start discharging their duties at different parts of Karachi.

Seven hundred police mobiles have been provided to Karachi’s police stations and the “15 Helpline” service has been outsourced to a third party for improvement in its efficiency, he added.

Referring to the suggestion of the KCCI president pertaining to equipping the police department in order to efficiently control law and order situation, the home minister said that only 3,000 pistols and 27,000 SMGs were available now with the police department, the home department purchased an additional 10,000 pistols and 30,000 SMGs, which have been provided to the police department so that they could deal with criminals in every part of Sindh.

He gave the assurance that all efforts would be made to further improve the law and order situation in Karachi, and to extend full support and cooperation to Karachi’s business and industrial community.

In another response to the president of the KCCI, the minister said that although a ban was in place for issuance of arms licenses, Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah will be asked to give permission for issuing licenses to those members of the KCCI who are recommended by the chamber.

The KCCI president, Muffasar Atta Malik, expressed deep concern over the rising street crimes in many areas of Karachi where citizens were being deprived of cash, mobiles phones and other valuables even in broad daylight.

The rising street crimes have triggered anxiety in the business and industrial community, which must be tackled more forcefully by the Sindh government and the law enforcing agencies and given top priority, he added.

He also underscored the need to equip and train the police officers and make them capable enough to efficiently and promptly deal with different types of crimes. Strategies should be devised to improve the policing system in Karachi and bring it at par with the policing system in different cities around the world.

Muffasar Malik said that frequent traffic jams on almost all the streets of Karachi have terribly impacted the lives of all the citizens and also affected the economic performance of this city. Effective plan of action has to be devised on priority basis by Sindh government

in order to provide relief to the perturbed citizens of Karachi who continue to suffer for hours and even get looted during these traffic jams.

He also requested the minister to lift the ban on issuance of arms licenses which remains in place from quite some time now. However, if it is not possible to completely lift this ban, the Sindh government should at least consider the KCCI’s request and start granting licenses to KCCI members formally recommended by the chamber, he added.

Sindh home secretary Qazi Shahid Pervez and additional IG of Sindh Police Mushtaq Maher were present at the meeting.