In a bid to make its operations more effective and transparent, the Punjab Food Authority has decided to make it mandatory for safety officers to wear body cameras.
The move comes after accusations of misconduct were levelled against the officers. The new technology, officials said, will allow the department to keep a record of the raids and also reduce the number of complaints related to the conduct of safety officers.
In addition, the monitoring cameras will also be mounted on vehicles used by the authority. According to details available with the Express Tribune, the Punjab Food Authority (PFA) has approved two tenders worth Rs 9.0million for the purchase of cameras.Under the plan, a pilot project will be rolled out in Lahore and Rawalpindi. Once the new system is tested, it will be extended to other parts of the province.
Officials familiar with the development said that the decision to use body cameras was taken by former director general Irfan Memon and incumbent Chairman Umar Tanveer Butt following public backlash against PFA raids in some parts of the province. The officers were accused of highhandedness and inappropriate conduct. Subsequently, the department decided to use body cameras.
Before approving the province-wide plan, the department procured two cameras on trial basis. Shortly after submitting the progress report, the project received the provincial administration’s approval.
After receiving the green light from the chief minister, the department rolled out two tenders earlier this week. According to an official privy to the matter, Rs 4.2million have been allocated under the first tender for the purchase of body cameras. Whereas Rs 4.8million has been set aside for the installation of cameras on PFA vehicles. Once installed, the official said, these cameras will be used to document the raids.
The PFA currently has 12 field inspection teams in Lahore and 11 in Rawalpindi. Each team has five members, including a food safety officer, assistant food safety officer, and a food safety trainee officer. A clerk and a driver are also part of the PFA raiding team.
As per the food authority’s established procedure, all members of the team are required to wear uniforms and display their identities prominently during the raid. The driver is required to be seated in the vehicle at all times.
“Food quality is on the government’s priority list. The PFA has launched this project to ensure fraudulent mafia in the sector are prevented from harming the public,” said Lawmaker and PFA Chairman Umar Tanveer. “The department is exploring other state-of-the-art technology options to prevent such mafia from operating in the province,” he added.
The new IP cameras, the chairman said, will be directly linked to the control room where a team of trained officers will monitor them.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 14th, 2021.
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Sir if food authority officers are missuse their authority and arrested a innocent people without any prove and when the hotel management following the term and conditions of government. The hotal is lisanced as a third class and low standard.