RAWALPINDI: On the directives of the Punjab government, private security guards are being deployed in the buses of educational institutions plying on long routes.

A senior security official told Dawn that the decision had been taken to ensure safety of the students and staff members in the wake of the terrorist attack on Bacha Khan University (BKU), Charsadda.

He said one armed security guard had been deployed in each bus of the University of Engineering and Technology (UET), Taxila. The security guard is deployed in the vehicle when it brings students from different parts of Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Wah, Taxila and back.

During a security survey recently carried out by the law enforcement agencies, the UET was categorised as A+ - having more than 500 students and vulnerable to a terrorist attack. However, there had never been a specific threat to the university.

“I was surprised to see a security guard sitting in the bus when I boarded it on Wednesday,” said student of the university.

Private guards deployed in the educational institutions, including schools, have been trained by police commandoes.

A directive issued by the UET administration said all students should keep their identity cards issued by the university administration with them and display it while entering the university premises and getting into the buses.

The students have also been directed to immediately lodge a complaint with the police in case of the loss of their university card besides informing the director student affairs.

A university student, who wished not to be named, told Dawn that all the UET students had been barred from gathering at the bus stand inside the university before leaving for their homes.

The security guards have been directed not to allow any student to board the university buses without producing their identity cards. The use of a photo copy card is not allowed and anyone found using the university identity card of other student will be fined Rs2,000.

Bunkers have been erected outside the girls’ hostel of the university and on the rooftops of the building and razor wires on top of the compound walls.

Published in Dawn, February 20th, 2016