Murree to get baton force this year again
Before the start of snow season which attract thousands of tourists to Murree, the Rawalpindi administration has decided to establish a baton-wielding force to avoid and control brawls reported at the hill station.
The snow season starts in November every year and ends in March. However, with the arrival of more visitors to the hill station from across the country, the incidents of violence between the locals and visitors have made headlines in the past few years.
Therefore, Rawalpindi Deputy Commissioner (DC) Anwarul Haq has directed the Civil Defence Department (CDD) to form a baton-wielding force this year too like the previous year.
The CDD will submit a report to the DC after establishing the force which will have 20 locals as volunteers.
The officials said that the force would be equipped with batons and walkie-talkies for communication which will perform duties under the supervision of the Murree Assistant Commissioner (AC).
The baton-wielding force would be deployed in different markets and at most visited sites in the hill station.
In case a fight occurs between tourists and locals, it will intervene to protect the visitors and resolve the matter amicably.
CDD District Officer (DO) Talib Hussain told The Express Tribune that the experiment of baton force went successful last year and the visitors felt protected.
He added that the volunteers would deployed at different spots in Murree from November 1.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 29th, 2020.