KARACHI: Pakistan Peoples Party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari has said police are being trained on modern lines and equipped with latest gadgets and weapons to turn them into an impregnable force that eliminates terrorism and creates an atmosphere for peaceful living.

The former president, who was addressing the 25th passing-out parade of the counterterrorism force, SSU commandos, at the Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Elite Police Training Centre, Razzakabad, on Monday paid tribute to the police officials for their sacrifice in the line of duty while fighting terrorists.

He said the children of slain police officials were like his children and he would never leave them alone in their hour of need. He directed the Sindh government to take care of their families on the pattern of other armed forces. “Prepare a comprehensive plan with the provision of the residential and educational facilities, issue appointment letters to their children in advance, pay them the salaries of their martyred parents until they become eligible to take their place,” he said.

He also asked the Sindh police chief to ensure construction of flats at the available land in police stations to provide safe residential facilities to serving officials. He said the police force was being strengthened with modern training, advanced weapons and scientific technology, detecting gadgets, bullet-proof vests and vehicles.

He praised the police for bringing down the rate of targeted killings and other crimes and said the credit went to the chief minister, IG Police Ghulam Hyder Jamali and his team.

Mr Zardari also congratulated the army on the completion of one year of the Zarb-i-Azb operation and lauded their achievements against the terrorists. He said: “I salute our brave martyred soldiers who sacrificed their lives so that the nation can live peacefully.”

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah said that the creation of the elite police force to root out terrorism was the idea of Mr Zardari. He said the Rangers and police under the Sindh government’s free-hand policy brought down targeted killings, extortion, kidnapping and other crimes in Karachi. He said the police had arrested the culprits behind the Safoora carnage within three days. Terrorists involved in the Shikarpur bomb blast had also been arrested, he added. Sindh IG Ghulam Hyder Jamali said the police were successfully fighting against terrorism which could be gauged from the report that from July 2014 to June 2015, the police killed 215 terrorists and wounded 659 criminals. During the period, 106 policemen were killed in the line of duty, he added.

Published in Dawn, June 16th, 2015

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