Karachi: Chief Minister Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah on Monday said that the provincial government wanted eradication of terrorism and drug mafia and restoration of peace in the province at all cost.
The CM Sindh chaired an apex committee meeting at the Chief Minister house and was attended by provincial Minister Information Sharjeel Memon, Home Minister Zia Lanjar, Mayor Karachi Murtaza Wahab, Corps Commander Karachi Lt Gen Babar Iftikhar, Chief Secretary Asif Hyder Shah, DG Ranger Major General Azhar Waqas.
Besides that Principal Secretary to CM (PSCM) Agha Wasif, Home Secretary Iqbal Memon, IG Police Ghulam Nabi Memon, Advocate General Hassan Akbar, Commissioner Karachi Hassan Naqvi, Adl IG Karachi Imran Yakoob, Chief Custom Collector Mohammad Yakoob Mako, Water Board Chief Officers Asadullah Khan and other concerned officers were also in attendance.
Delivering his address in the huddle he said that we are taking measures for eradication of robbers in Kacha areas and street crimes in Karachi.
Syed Murad Ali Shah expressing determination said that we restored the law and order situation in the past and we will must restore peace in the province.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has decided to take measures to monitor the sale of stolen or snatched mobile phones and vehicles as spare parts or in their complete form in the markets of Karachi.
Additionally he directed that police pickets will be established to strengthen the left bank of the River Indus and contain the dacoits within the katcha area.
“The recovery of ransom from the families of the kidnapped individuals will be considered terror financing and the people involved in facilitating the collection of the ransom amount would be identified through intelligence work to crush them, ” the CM said.
Street Crime:
Minister Home Zia Lanjar and IG Police Ghulam Nabi Memon briefing the meeting said that street crime particularly mobile snatching and four-wheeler and two-wheeler theft has decreased due to improved policing, however, the cases of four snatching has shown slight increase.
Comparative figures for the first three months (January to April) of 2023 and 2024 indicate a decrease in the number of theft cases reported. In 2024, 15,345 two-wheelers were stolen which is 953 cases less than the 16,298 incidents reported in 2023.
Similarly, the theft of four-wheelers decreased by 145 cases with 520 vehicles stolen in 2024 as compared to 665 in 2023.
The number of mobile phones snatched also showed a decline, with 6,813 cases reported in 2024 as compared to 8,688 in 2023, indicating a decrease of 1,875 cases.
According to the statistics, there has been a significant increase in the snatching of four-wheelers and two-wheelers.
In 2023, 60 two-wheelers were snatched, and this number increased to 80 in 2024. Similarly, 1805 two-wheelers were snatched in 2023, while the number of cases rose to 3094 in 2024.
However, the overall figures of street crime have shown a decrease of 1613 cases. In 2023, 27,680 cases of street crime were registered, while the number decreased to 26067 in 2024.
The meeting was reported that the police conducted 467 encounters in 2024. In these encounters, 67 criminals were killed, 489 were injured and 1766 were arrested. The weapons recovered from the criminals included one SMG, 2111 pistols, 30 rifles, seven shotguns and 18 grenades.
The Chief Minister instructed the IG Police to reactivate the Shaheen Force with a dedicated motorcycle squad of 386 motorcycles. The squad should patrol the identified hotspots during peak hours, and each SSP should issue and implement a patrolling plan. Additionally, the police department was directed to revamp Madadgar-15.
The Home Minister announced that an additional 168 vehicles, including 120 motorbikes, would be deployed to enhance the police force’s capabilities.
E-tagging of street criminals:
The Chief Minister instructed the Inspector General (IG) of police to initiate the E-tagging of repeat offenders. A pilot project should be started with 4,000 devices. The IG police reported that the Rules have been drafted and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are being formulated.
The meeting was informed that 67 Investigation Officers have been assigned to cases of robbery with murder, robbery, and injury. The police have activated the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) to investigate these cases.
The Chief Minister also directed the IG police to upgrade the Command and Control Centre at the Central Police Office (CPO). Currently, 2,000 cameras are already installed, 325 new cameras are being installed, and 500 old cameras are being upgraded to enhance security measures.
Dacoits factor:
Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar informed the meeting that he had visited all the districts of Sukkur and Larkana divisions, where dacoits have been causing problems.
He stated that since July 2022, the chief minister has constructed 107 police pickets along the left bank of the River Indus, where 759 police personnel are currently deployed. It was mentioned that 567 people have been saved from kidnappings through honey traps.
The CM emphasized that the left bank of the River Indus has been secured, and now there is a need to strengthen the right bank to secure the Shikarpur and Kashmore districts.
The meeting noted that 118 people were kidnapped from January to April 19, 2024, of whom 96 have been recovered, and 22 remain missing.
Minister Home assured the meeting that he has visited the areas and is making all-out efforts for the recovery of the remaining people.
The minister also informed the meeting that there were only about 90 dacoits, and the others were their tribesmen.
He added that he has spared 3000 policemen and deployed 1000 each in Ghotki, Kashmore, and Shikarpur. He further mentioned that he has discussed the matter with the RPO Bahawalpur and DIG Rajanpur for the establishment of police pickets on the side of the Punjab province.
The chief minister directed the chief secretary to get the work on the Ghotki-Kandhkot bridge sped up. DG Rangers told the CM that he has also deployed Rangers for the security of the workers engaged on the construction work of the bridge.
Illegal Spectrum:
The meeting was told that the Ministry of Interior has notified 10 Joint Check Posts (JCPs). The JCPs are manned by Police, Rangers, Customs & Agriculture Department personnel. The CM said that check pots would be constructed and equipped on both sides of the road.
Anti-Smuggling Operation:
Chief Collector Custom, South told the meeting that between January and April, 642 seizures of smuggled goods worth Rs 5184 million have been made. He added that the Rangers handed over 250 cases valued at Rs. 411 million, the Police handed over 26 cases valued at Rs. 251 million, and 190 cases valued at Rs. 3.303 billion. At this, the CM said that coordination between the different law enforcement agencies was making good progress.
Mr Memon said that his department has started an awareness campaign in different Colleges/universities to avoid drugs. He added that during the last few months, 164 cases of narcotics have been registered against which 166 persons were arrested, seized 27 vehicles, and 22 motorcycles.
He added that 4.380 kg of heroin, 419.472 hashish, 1300 kg of cannabis, 623 bottles of foreign liquor, 522 bottles of beer, 7154 litters of illicit liquor, 12.38 kg of Ice, and other things have been recovered.
Anti-Smuggling Operation:
Chief Collector Custom, South told the meeting that between January and April, 642 seizures of smuggled goods worth Rs 5184 million have been made. He added that the Rangers handed over 250 cases valued at Rs. 411 million, the Police handed over 26 cases valued at Rs. 251 million, and 190 cases valued at Rs. 3.303 billion. At this, the CM said that coordination between the different law enforcement agencies was making good progress.
