KARACHI, April 15: The Sindh government has decided to come up against street crimes with an iron fist intensifying police and Rangers’ patrolling and cracking down on gangs involved in such crimes including the mobile snatching throughout the province.

“The decision would come into force from April 15 and the police with back up support of Rangers on bikes would be patrolling even in the narrow streets of the cities of the province to combat street crimes,” Sindh Home Minister Rauf Siddiqui told journalists after chairing a meeting at his office on the subject.

Referring to mobile snatching incidents, Rauf Siddiqi announced that mobile phones stolen from any residential or commercial areas of the metropolis would be rendered ineffective from April 15 for use by any other person under a precision device introduced by cellular companies.

The home minister said that the mobile companies had introduced International Mobile Identification system to turn the stolen or snatched sets useless.

He asked the owners of mobile telephones to preserve the IMI number of their telephones by dialling the code “*#06# and in case of its snatching or stealing report the same to the CPLC, Madadgar-15 or respective area police station.

After receiving such information, the mobile phone companies would make the stolen or snatched set useless. “The stolen or snatched mobile sets could not be used even with other SIMs and if anybody tried to install another SIM, he would receive a message that his set is stolen/ snatched and would stop functioning,” he added.

Rauf Siddiqui also sounded a note of warning to the traders dealing in stolen and snatched mobile phone sets that their shops would be sealed in case they were found selling such things. “This is the last warning and now the government would not show any leniency to them,” he categorically stated.

He appealed to the citizens to cooperate with police and Rangers in combating street crimes.

“In case, they see any incident of street crime taking place, they must note the number of vehicle used in the crime and report the same to the nearest police station or Madadgar-15. I assure the citizens that they would not be harassed by the police nor dragged for investigation,” he said.

The home minister said that the CCPO and other officers would arrange press briefings fortnightly on the performance of police and Rangers on the subject.—PPI/ APP