KARACHI: Inspector General of Sindh Police (IGP) Ghulam Haider Jamali chaired a high-level meeting on Monday during which security plans for educational institutions in the province were discussed.

Additional IG Sindh police Ghulam Qadir Thebo, Karachi's zonal Deputy Inspectors General (DIGs) and DIG Special Branch Naeem Akram Bharoka also attended the meeting during which security measures for educational institutions in Karachi and other cities were reviewed in detail.

Naeem Akram Bharoka submitted a comprehensive report on the analysis and observations regarding the current security situation.

He also suggested that educational institutions' security should be categorised according to the nature of sensitivity.

Jamali, on the other hand, advised that the educational institutions should be categorised according to possible threats and targets or specific information.

The IGP also advised that a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) should be devised for security after holding consultations with various institutions before January 11.

During the meeting, Additional IG Karachi Ghulam Qadir Thebo said that letters were sent out to educational institutions to have joint security measures with the police.

"Schools have been advised to keep parking of vehicles at a safe distance from school premises and similarly only authorised vehicles/personnel should be allowed to enter school premises," Thebo said.

Zonal DIGs of Karachi told IGP Jamali that Station House Officers (SHO) have been briefed on specific instructions and they have been asked to list various educational institutes that come under their jurisdiction in order to beef up security.

Counter Assault Teams (CATs) comprising of police commandos will be formed to deal with emergency situations.

"Under the Disaster Response Program, CATs are being constituted to deal with any emergency situation at district level. The CAT would be comprising police commandos duly sensitised with the police response strategy and emergency evacuation plan," Zonal DIGs stated.

IGP Jamali further directed the officials to step up operations against criminal elements in Karachi.

"Pro-active policing is key in order to avoid any untoward incidents and therefore police should enhance its capability and capacity to ensure collection of advanced intelligence," Jamali said. "Small search groups at police station level may also be constituted to hunt for possible criminal elements around government offices or residential areas, school buildings, public places to foil their nefarious activities."