Working together: Bahawalpur police stations to be upgraded

Baghdadul Jadeed police station to get new furniture, community centre and park

BAHAWALPUR: Several police stations in Bahawalpur district will be upgraded with help from the Police Department and the Bahawalpur Chamber of Commerce and Industry. In the first phase, the Baghdadul Jadeed model police station will get new furniture, a community centre and a park.

Bahawalpur Regional Police Officer Ehsan Sadiq spoke to several members of the chambers of commerce at the Baghdadul Jadeed police station on Tuesday.

The RPO thanked the business community for their cooperation and said that it was absolutely important for all segments of the society to stay in close contact with the police. “This is the only way we can improve our image,” he said. The RPO told the delegation that they would provide the business community with every possible facility and security.

Chamber of Commerce president Zafar Sharif appreciated the district police for taking positive steps to provide a safe environment for businessmen. He lauded the RPO’s vision for community policing and agreed that maintaining close liaison within the police would help improve the law and order situation in the district.

Monthly report

Bahawalpur police registered 645 cases this month – 34 fewer cases than in January 2015. Police managed to arrest 806 out of 1,524 nominated suspects and disposed of 22 ‘fake’ cases.

In a press statement issued on Tuesday, the district police said they had arrested a murder suspect, nine accused of attempted murder, 56 suspected robbers nominated in 22 burglary cases, 24 accused in nine kidnap for ransom cases, seven were arrested in 13 rape cases. Police have presented challans for the suspects in court, the statement said. Police also arrested 11 suspects accused of armed robbery and four were arrested for two street crimes cases. Stolen items worth Rs330,000 were seized from them.

During a crackdown against possession of illegal weapons, 35 cases were registered and 35 suspects were arrested. Police seized four rifles, three shotguns, 28 revolvers/pistols and 96 bullets from them.

In the crackdown against drug pushers, police registered 100 cases and arrested 100 suspects. They seized 19.835kg hashish, 9,253 bottles of liquor, 95 litre of Lahn (a specific kind of liquor brewed locally) and 15 micro-distilleries.

In a crackdown against gambling dens, police registered 28 cases and arrested 112 suspects out of 135 nominated suspects.

In the crackdown against wanted criminals, police busted three gangs involved in armed robberies and burglaries and arrested 12 out of 13 gang members. Police said that they had traced four cases and presented challans for them.

Development projects

A sewerage system in Chachran Sharif, Rahim Yar Khan district, is being constructed at a cost of Rs1 billion. Construction and repair work at the Government Degree College, Baghdadul Jadeed Road, Bahawalpur, and the Government Rizwia Islamia College, Haroonabad, is underway. Officials at the Divisional Development Working Party’s meeting on Tuesday said both development projects would be completed as soon as possible.

Bahawalpur Division Commissioner Saqib Zafar asked officials to point out people responsible for creating unnecessary delays in the construction work. “We will take strict action against them.”

Published in The Express Tribune, February 10^th,  2016.