Bilawal orders intensifying operation against Katcha area dacoits

Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Friday chaired a meeting on the law and order situation in Sindh and directed that there should be zero tolerance for kidnappings for ransom and other heinous crimes.

The meeting was attended by Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon, Minister for Agriculture Muhammad Bakhsh Mehar, Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar, Principal Secretary Agha Wasif, Secretary Home Iqbal Memon, IGP Ghulam Nabi Memon and Sindh Assembly member Jamil Soomro.

Bilawal asked how the Sindh government was handling the law and order situation vin the province, saying that protecting the life and property of the people was the responsibility of the government.

Chief Minister Shah told the PPP chairman that kidnappings for ransom had been in controlled in many districts of northern Sindh, including Sukkur, Ghotki, Kashmore and Shikarpur. The police are being targeted by dacoits, but there had been a lot of improvement in these districts, he said.

The operation against criminal elements must be further intensified, Bilawal said and asked the CM and the IGP to increase the policing of northern districts. There is zero tolerance for kidnappings for ransom and other heinous crimes, he said.

The Sindh government should make a policy to distribute government land among women in the Kutcha area, the PPP chairman said and added that the government should also give ownership to peace-loving people there. It is the policy of the PPP that no kind of abuse against minorities, women and children would be tolerated.

He stated that road accidents in Karachi should be controlled at all costs and the Sindh government's ongoing operation against drugs should also be improved. IGP Ghulam Nabi Memon briefing the meeting on the situation of the Kutcha area said that from March 2024 till March 2025, 87 dacoits were killed and 298 injured in Sukkur, Ghotki, Kashmore and Shikarpur. Five declared dacoits were killed in an operation and 12 declared dacoits were arrested, he said and added that the police saved 534 people from being kidnapped.

PPP Chairman Bilawal ordered strengthening the Counter Terrorism Department of the Sindh police. At this, the CM said the police had been strengthened in terms of weapons, equipment and training. The CTD conducted 2,225 intelligence-based operations, 208 terrorists were arrested and four were killed in operations.

Moreover, we have given a direct budget to the police stations, Shah said and noted that this year, Rs6 billion had been given to police stations so that their level can be improved.

Regarding the protection of highways, Bilawal said that it is very important to secure highways. At this, Home Minister Lanjar said the S-4 project monitors all the traffic routes of the city, and the Sindh police have also started patrolling highways, with 200 police personnel patrolling highways in 100 vehicles.

Bilawal said the pace of work on the Karachi Safe City Project should also be accelerated. The CM said the work on the project has been accelerated, 1,300 CCTV cameras are being installed at a cost of Rs6.62 billion, and CCTV cameras are being installed in the Red Zone and along the airport corridor in the first phase. Moreover, the CCTV cameras have the facility of facial recognition and number plate recognition.

Later, the PPP chairman chaired a meeting on the agriculture sector. The meeting was attended by Chief Minister Shah, MNA Khursheed Shah, Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon, Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar, MPA Jamil Soomro, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Agha Wasif, and Secretary Agriculture Sohail Qureshi.

The government is taking steps for the development of the agriculture sector, the CM said and added that the Department of Agriculture is also working on research and some new varieties have been introduced.

Minister for Agriculture Muhammad Bakhsh Mehar informed briefed Bilawal that agriculture is practised on 487 million acres in Sindh.

Bilawal said there have been talks of a water shortage and farmers asking for fertilizers and seeds. He said the government should take necessary steps for the development of agriculture sector, which has been affected due to climate change.

Bilawal also issued instructions to improve the Dockery Rice Research Center by providing necessary facilities and also ordered paving water channels. He was informed that there are 52,955 water courses in Sindh, out of which 36,150 are more active.

Moreover, Bilawal issued instructions to bring agricultural packages for women and for farm mechanization. The minister for Agriculture said 132 bulldozers were given for levelling the land, and 23,974 small and large tractors were given to farmers for work on the land.

The PPP chairman said the Department of Agriculture should do more work on the lining of water courses, laser land levelling, kitchen garden, solar tube wells, and tunnel farming. He issued directives to provide relief to farmers through the Hari Card.

CM Shah told the meeting that eight billion rupees have been allocated for the agriculture department, while the minister for agriculture said the work of registering farmers for the Hari Card is underway.

Bilawal ordered introducing new technology for the development of agriculture; we have to bring crops that consume less water and give more yield. He directed the government to prepare a strategy regarding climate change, address all sectors under climate change and provide relief to institutions affected by climate change. He called for a plan for crop insurance due to climate change.