Half of KP police stations operate in rented, ramshackle

[iioal malik]

Paharipura police station has been set up in a private building. — Dawn

“My colleagues and I feel insecure as we have no safety guards. We stand alert all the time during our duty hours and keep a vigilant eye on the movement of people all around us. An ambusher or attacker can approach us from any side. If we police personnel are not safe, how we can take proper measures to save others,” said a young guard posted outside a rented police station in Peshawar.

Experts on security issues believe that poor infrastructure advisedly affects efficiency and service deliverability of the police.

“Numerous militant attacks on the police stations and checkposts, which have resulted in killing hundreds of cops, necessitates that the authorities concerned seriously resolve this issue by providing foolproof security to police force in the first place to effectively control crime rate and subvert terrorist attacks” Zarrak Khan, a retired police officer, told this scribe.

Another official said that young police guards posted in and outside police stations and police posts operating in rented buildings felt insecure and lived in a state of discomfort.

“If a complainant comes up for lodging a complaint, he/she is being greeted by ugly bags of sands and a mash of razor wires on the entrance of the police stations,” he said. He added that police stations and police posts operating in rented buildings were in the most cases private homes, not fit for police operation.

“How can a private residence or a household building serve as a police station or police post? Such places should not be used on permanent basis. Condition of almost all these structures is miserable. No proper facilities are available for the policemen working there,” said the official.

http://www.dawn.com/news/1252615/half-of-kp-police-stations-operate-in-rented-ramshackle-buildings