Karachi police chief admits sharp rise in street crime

Police will collaborate with traders and industrialists to rein in crime in Korangi and Mehran Town areas, assured Karachi police chief AIG Javed Alam Odho.

Additional Inspector General (AIG) Odho said police will make plans to manage traffic when the deluge from the Balochistan rains finally reaches the Korangi Causeway.

Addressing traders and industrialists at the Korangi Association of Trade and Industry (KATI) on Thursday, the city's top cop admitted that that street crime had increased. "We are aware of it, but the overall crime situation is much better than before," he added.

He said that according to data released by the Citizen Police Liaison Committee (CPLC), overall street crime in Karachi has reduced some 30 per cent, while the theft of motorcycles has come down 40 per cent.

"The police department is short of manpower. With the city of Karachi expanding rapidly, the force is very small." He said that police patrolling, blockades and police check posts were being increased in industrial and commercial areas of Karachi on a priority basis.

He revealed that officers have been ordered to increase police presence in the city and eliminate unnecessary activities. Odho said that on the request of KATI, the investigation complex was being shifted to Korangi. In this regard, some offices have already been shifted to Shah Faisal.

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Earlier, KATI President Salman Aslam said that crime has come down in recent times, but street crime is on the rise. "Police patrols in Karachi, especially in Korangi, should be increased to discourage criminal elements," he advised.

He said that the officers posted in Korangi were discharging their responsibilities with honesty due to which the traffic situation in the industrial area has improved.

Zubair Chhaya, CEO of Kite Limited, said there has been a sharp rise in mobile and motorcycle snatching incidents in the city. On the other hand, he agreed there was peace and order.

"Unlike the past, kidnappings for ransom and theft of trucks are not common in the city." He said that the current wave of street crime was also due to the economic situation of the country and unemployment.

Chhaya stated that criminal elements were on the rise in Mehran Town and should be eradicated immediately. "There are reports that the land-grabbing mafia has once again become active in Mehran Town."

He said that under the guise of welfare of workers in Korangi, many organisations were being formed and were involved in extortion and blackmailing by threatening industrialists. "Such elements must be eliminated," he stressed.

Danish Khan, chairman of the standing committee, believed that the people of Sindh were facing severe difficulties due to the separation of departments of investigation and operations. He said that these two departments should be merged immediately.