QUETTA: Balochistan government has decided to establish a special force to be deployed at university campuses across the province in the aftermath of the brutal attack on the Bacha Khan University in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Charsadda town last week.

“The new force would be subservient to vice chancellors,” Akbar Hussain Durrani, Balochistan home secretary, told Dawn.com. He however said administrative powers over the force would be with police.

Durrani said 60 personnel will be deployed at each university, adding that the force will be well equipped.

The decision comes in the aftermath of a terrorist attack at the Bacha Khan University in Charsadda, which claimed more than 20 lives, when unidentified gunmen opened fire on students and faculty members as they gathered at the school for a poetry recital to commemorate the death anniversary of the activist and leader whom the school is named after.

Read: Mock counter-terrorism drill leaves PU students fleeing in fear.

This was the second major attack on an education institution after terrorists massacred 144 people at a Peshawar school in Dec 2014 – the most brutal act of terror in the country's history.

Both, the Peshawar school massacre and the Bacha Khan University attack, were claimed by Umar Mansoor of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Geedar group.

Security in and around all university campuses in Balochistan had already been tightened after last week's attack in Charsadda to avert any untoward incident.

Following the attack on the Charsadda varsity last week, security arrangements at universities and colleges have been upgraded all across the country.

The Punjab government also issued orders for foolproof security arrangements in public, private, missionary, armed forces, multinational schools, colleges and universities.

In a circular issued last week, it has been stated that educational institutions will not be allowed to work in case of unsatisfactory security arrangements.

Meanwhile, teachers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa – where both school attacks took place – have been allowed to bear arms and were imparted training to use firearms after the Peshawar Army Public School attack.

Take a look: Teachers undergo weapons training.

Opinion

Beefing up security

Beefing up security

The issue lies not in the sincerity and dedication of Pakistan’s law enforcement but in their capacity and access to effective surveillance equipment.

Editorial

Concerning measures
Updated 03 Nov, 2024

Concerning measures

The govt must seek political input and consensus on the changes it is seeking to make and be open about its intentions.
Short-lived relief?
03 Nov, 2024

Short-lived relief?

POLICYMAKERS must be jumping with joy. At the close of the first quarter of FY25, the budget posted a consolidated...
Brisk spread
03 Nov, 2024

Brisk spread

THE surge in polio cases has reached distressing levels with a tally of 45 last reported, after two cases emerged in...
Ultimate price
Updated 02 Nov, 2024

Ultimate price

To dismantle culture of impunity for crimes against journalists, state must ensure that perpetrators do not go unpunished.
Mastung bombing
02 Nov, 2024

Mastung bombing

INSTABILITY continues to haunt Balochistan, as Friday morning’s bombing in Mastung has shown. At least nine...
Plane speak
02 Nov, 2024

Plane speak

DESPITE all its efforts to facilitate PIA’s privatisation, it seems the government only ended up being taken for a...