Law enforcers on tenterhooks

Policemen complain of long duty hours, lack of facilities

RAWALPINDI:

The security situation remained uncertain and fluid in Rawalpindi on Thursday as the city administration and police put in place more stringent measures on roads ahead of the march of the banned Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP).

Public transport including the metro bus service between the twin cities and markets and shopping centres remained closed on Thursday as the city wore a deserted look with security forces patrolling on roads.

The Rawalpindi city wore a deserted look on the second consecutive day while the administration remained busy erecting more obstructions in different locations and thoroughfares fearing that the TLP workers could assemble after the Friday prayer.

District officials said there was a huge possibility that TLP marchers would head towards Murree Road after the Friday prayer. The Murree Road had virtually been blocked from all sides by erecting blockades to deny access to the TLP workers to assemble at Faizabad Interchange.

Streets and link roads leading to the Murree Road and Faizabad had also been sealed at different locations by placing containers and other blockades.

The security of sensitive installations had been put under the control of Rangers.

Petrol pumps are also running out of stock as the entry of heavy vehicles has been banned in the city. Vegetable, fruit and other wholesale markets of different daily-use commodities also remained closed on Thursday.

The route between Rawalpindi and Lahore via GT Road remained suspended as the GT Road has been sealed at 13 different locations from Sohawa and Gujranwala.

Meanwhile, the long and rigorous duty stretching over a week with a lack of facilities has lowered the morale of the Rawalpindi police.

Sources in the police department said that personnel of the Rawalpindi police and supplementary force from other districts have been deployed on main thoroughfares for the past week, who have to perform as long as 20 hours.

Inadequate arrangements of food and accommodation have also taken a toll on the police force.

A policeman, deployed at Faizabad Interchange for the last one week, told The Express Tribune that the weather has turned cold and no proper accommodation arrangements have been made for them. He said that the police personnel either have to sleep at metro bus stations or take shelter under different buildings.

He also complained about poor food being dished out to them and said they get two flatbreads and two potato cutlets in lunch and one flatbread and a potato cutlet in dinner which was inadequate.

The policeman said there is no toilet facility for them as well and they have to defecate in the open.

Another policeman who had been called to the duty from another district said he never saw such a pathetic state of affairs in his life.

He said that senior police officials have threatened to issue show-cause notices if they complained about the lack of facilities.

The policemen also demanded a shift schedule because they will not be able to face the protesters if there was a clash as the security personnel were in low spirits.

Meanwhile, SSP (Operations) Rai Mazhar said the spirit and morale of the security personnel were high and they were ready to cope with any situation.

He said that they were providing good facilities to the force, however, they could not be provided beds on the field.

The police officer said that some policemen also overstate the situation as according to him, senior officials have also been on duty for the last several days.

Further, some 252 traffic police officials from seven districts of the province have been deployed in Rawalpindi for a month to regulate the traffic.

The Punjab Traffic Headquarters has dispensed services of 252 officers and personnel from seven different districts, Muzaffargarh, Layyah, Rajanpur, Bahawalnagar, Multan, Khanewal and DG Khan to traffic departments of Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Gujrat, and Lahore for a month.

Some 40 traffic policemen from Muzaffargarh, 56 from Rajanpur and 20 from Multan are at the disposal of the Rawalpindi City Traffic Police.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 29^th, 2021.