Sindh chief minister Qaim Ali Shah chairing a meeting on law and order in Karachi on Tuesday. PHOTO: NNI
KARACHI: During a meeting on law and order in Karachi, Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah on Tuesday called for forming a new registration policy for registering madarassas (seminaries) in the province.
Shah asked Chief Secretary Siddique Memon to coordinate with the federal government to ensure a speedy progress in the matter.
Home Secretary Mukhtiar Soomro told the chief minister that the provincial government had proposed a legislation for the purpose but federal government had instead prepared a proforma on which the home department has given its input.
On this Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Memon suggested that a column for the donors who donate their lands for construction of a madarassa should also be included with the condition to seek the a no-objection certificate from the home department before such a donation is made.
The meeting was attended by provincial ministers, Home Secretary Mukhtiar Soomro, Inspector General (IG) Sindh, Ghulam Hyder Jamali, Additional IG Karachi Ghulam Qadir Thebo and others.
Security measures
The chief minister reviewed the security situation in the province and progress made on decisions made as part of the National Action Plan (NAP).
Home Secretary Mukhtiar Soomro told the chief minister said that in the light of May 14 Special Apex Committee meeting held under the chairmanship of Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif, the decision to set up a Counter Terrorism Cell (CTC) in the Corps Headquarters with representatives of all the intelligence agencies has been completed.
IG Sindh Ghulam Hyder Jamali said that they had sent a list of gadgets that the police immediately required to the GHQ, in response to which Sindh Police had received 500 rifles.
Asked about procurement of armoured personnel carriers (APCs), the chief secretary explained he along with the IG Police were working out specifications to procure locally built APCs and that a team of experts will visit Heavy Mechanical Complex in Taxila.
The CM further directed the Home Secretary to deliver a comprehensive report on ‘static balloon camera surveillance’ to establish an effective air surveillance system.
In light of the recent attacks on minorities, Shah asked the chief secretary to hold a comprehensive meeting with representatives of minorities, including Ismaili and Bohra communities, and give them assurance of addressing their security concerns.
"I want you to work out a detailed security plan to avoid soft targets onward."
Read: Serious concerns: Over 8,000 seminaries operate without affiliation
At this, Memon said that a meeting was scheduled for later on Tuesday.
Computerisation of land records
Memon told the CM that the process of computerisation of revenue records (land) had was 80 per cent complete, adding that he will invite the CM to inaugurate five computerised centres.
The chief minister observed that computerisation of land record, identification of government and private land would become easy. "In this way an effective operation would be launched against the land grabbers."
Rescue 1122
Shah sought progress on creation of a Rescue 1122 emergency service for Karachi under the Crisis Control Management (CCM).
The chief minister directed that a team of the Provincial Disaster Management Authority should go to Rawalpindi to study the service’s method of operation and replicate it in Karachi.
Read: Uniform standards: Most unregistered Madaris in K-P, says officials
The decision to initiate Rescue 1122 had been made after failure of existing rescue infrastructure to respond in time to the Safoora tragedy.
The CM said that the 2,500 acres of forest land recovered from dacoits in Ghotki would be issued to local landless farmers.
For this purpose, he directed the chief secretary to work out a proposal thus eradicating the bad practice once and for all.
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