January 23, 2008	Wednesday	Muharram 13, 1429

KARACHI, Jan 22: The provincial caretaker Home Minister, Brigadier (retd) Akhtar Zamin, said that over 20 suspects involved in terrorist and other criminal activities had been arrested since 1st Muharram across the province but security apprehensions still existed.

He was chairing a high-level meeting held on Tuesday regarding the law and order situation and highway robberies.

The minister said that the federal government must cooperate with the provincial authorities by providing them with funds and other resources to make Sindh and particularly Karachi a citadel of peace.

He said that only the federal and the Punjab governments would decide about a post-mortem examination of the assassinated PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto and the Sindh government had nothing to do with it.

The caretaker minister pointed out that the PPP co-chairman, Asif Ali Zardari, had been provided with the required security.

He said that after the peaceful passage of Ashura, the Feb 18 election was the foremost task before the government for which all necessary measures had been taken while the army would also remain standby.

Brig Akhtar said that after the completion of M-9 project of the construction of Karachi-Hyderabad highway from four to six lanes, special measures would be taken to check highway crimes so as to ensure a safe journey.

Regarding an Afghan refugees settlement at Sohrab Goth and other encroachments, he said talks had been held with the relevant departments in this regard.

He said that various schemes would be implemented for an improved security in various industrial areas including Landhi-Korangi.

Home Secretary Arif Khan, CCPO Karachi Niaz Ahmed Siddiqi, DCO Karachi Javed Hanif, DIG East Salman Syed, TPO Gadap Mir Hussain Lehrri, SSP Traffic Zone-II Nisar Ahmed Bajwa, EDO Revenue Saleh Farooqui and NHA Director Abdul Aziz Langah and others attended the meeting.—APP