January 29, 2006	Sunday	Zilhaj 28, 1426

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ISLAMABAD, Jan 28: Islamabad Model Traffic Police finally took charge of capital’s traffic on Saturday with an attractive new look, modern gadgetry, better salary and less duty hours much to the envy of their counterparts in other cities.

With a seed money of Rs204 million, the new force has been trained by the Motorway Police. Earlier, the strength of traffic police was 266 which has been increased to 709.

The nation expects you to work diligently and with honesty, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said at the launching ceremony of Islamabad Traffic Police here at the Sports Complex.

The ceremony was also attended by a large number of police officials, diplomats, schoolchildren and citizens of Islamabad.

“Your job is to end the menace of VIP culture in Islamabad by taking to task violators of traffic rules and not extending any favour to influentials,” the prime minister said.

He said it was quite amazing to note that after homicide, the single factor responsible for the highest number of deaths and injuries in Pakistan was road accidents.

He said unfortunately, most fatal accidents took place due to increasing traffic volume, non-commensurating road system, excessive speed, drivers’ inattention and lack of road use education.

The public are tired of the way the police have been handling traffic management that resulted in traffic jams and disruption of traffic flow, he said.

VVIP movement is one of the major causes of traffic jams and the authorities concerned tried to minimize it, he said. Besides, school-timings have also contributed to traffic mess.

The prime minister said the Capital Development Authority (CDA) had been directed to widen roads and construct underpasses and flyovers.

Mr Aziz said the Model Traffic Police’s objective was to ensure quality, high performance, state-of-the-art traffic management that minimized delay and disruption and attain positive image and respect for the traffic police.

He said the Model Traffic Police had been introduced in the capital with a view to bringing a new and healthy change in the traffic system which would later be followed in all provinces of the country.

Earlier, Interior Minister Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao said in the recent past, the government had taken a number of important steps to make capital police more efficient and effective, especially in the wake of present day security requirements.

Islamabad police have been bifurcated into two divisions, capital city police and capital security police, he said, adding that the government had ensured to provide sufficient funds to equip and man these bifurcated divisions of police with better training.

The minister said it was an irony that earlier there existed no proper bomb disposal squad in the capital police. However, the present government established a well-equipped squad manned by qualified and experienced personnel.

It has also been decided by the government that a community police liaison committee will be set up on the pattern of the one functioning in Karachi, the minister said, adding that in this connection necessary steps had been taken.

The government has already directed the Capital Development Authority to take immediate measures to improve road infrastructure, he added.