Karachi set for security overhaul

CM gives nod to Rs9.5b security complex, seeks master-plan

KARACHI:

Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has given in-principle approval to a Rs9.5 billion state-of-the-art headquarters and training academy for the Sindh Police's Special Security Unit (SSU) in Chowkundi, seeking to overhaul the province's capacity for counterterrorism and specialised security operations while directing officials to review the master plan before moving the project through formal approval channels.

The decision came at a meeting chaired at the CM House on Tuesday, where a comprehensive proposal for the integrated security complex was reviewed. Shah directed the Home Department, Police, Planning & Development Department and Finance Department to expedite procedural requirements so that Phase-I of the project could begin during the current financial year.

The proposed complex will be built on around 29.43 acres in Chowkundi and will bring together SSU command, training, residential and support infrastructure at a single-purpose campus. The facility is designed to cater to more than 3,000 male and 300 female personnel.

Officials told the meeting that existing police training facilities in Sindh were designed for an earlier era and were increasingly inadequate for modern security demands.