GUJRAT: The district police have extended its security branch system of gathering intelligence information at the police station level as around four dozen constables have been deputed at 22 police stations in the district. Earlier, every district police had a security branch at the district level.

These constables have been deputed on the pattern of British era’s foot constable as the foot constable was supposed to gather intelligence information in the area of the police station concerned where he was posted.

The police stations covering more area are given minimum two constables while those located in urban areas are given one constable for intelligence gathering.

With the posting of these constables, each police station will have its own security branch which will gather maximum information about residents, important installations, businesses and other activities.

Gujrat District Police Officer Rai Ijaz Ahmed told Dawn these constables had been given notebooks and few other gadgets to collect maximum information which he was bound to share with the SHO of the police station concerned.

He said sub-divisional police officers (SDPOs) had also been tasked with examining these notebooks at least fortnightly.

The DPO said the primary obligation of these constables would be to keep an eye on activities in the area concerned as notebooks carried different columns to be filled in by them with basic information.

He said the notebooks carried the columns to ascertain the number of watchmen, mosques, religious seminaries, Imambargahs, government and private hospitals and dispensaries, churches, religious conflicts, brick kilns, jewelry shops, banks, factories, hotels and restaurants, billiard and snooker clubs, internet cafes, rent a car, van and bus stands, scrap dealers, gypsy families, rented houses, real estate agents, mobile phone shops, petrol stations, cable operators, criminals, enmities, educational institutions, printing presses and other such information. The DPO said constables had initiated a survey in their respective areas to gather information sought in the notebook, adding that they would be bound to file reports on a daily basis.

PERTOL PUMP: The district police will set up its own petrol pump in front of the Gujrat jail as it will not only help save the fuel budget of the local police but also become a source of earning profit.

The earning from the petrol pump, which is expected to be Rs0.5 million monthly, will be spent on providing financial assistance to widows and children of the martyred police officials and other welfare projects.

The Pakistan State Oil will install its machines while out of the total estimated cost of Rs30 million, the PSO will contribute Rs20 million and the district police Rs10 million.

The construction of the filling station will start soon after Eid holidays.

Published in Dawn, August 2nd, 2014