KARACHI: The Sindh High Court has sought a complete report about the memorandum of understanding signed with certain non-governmental organisations to provide training to police officers.

The SHC also said that the report must contain complete details, including funds utilised by the department concerned as well as the amount paid to the NGOs and others and material provided to the officers who have been trained.

Justice Salahuddin Panhwar of the SHC said that these directions be communicated to the chief secretary of Sindh, the home secretary and the provincial police officer for compliance and to come up in court on Dec 18.

In October, the bench had directed the authorities concerned that since criminals were getting advanced, investigators should not only be aware of latest techniques/developments in securing evidence, but officers must also be equipped with necessary skills and use of such devices.

In compliance, a report on behalf of the provincial police officer was submitted about the steps taken to train the officers of the Sindh police.

The report said that training of trainers and advance courses were being conducted since 2011 in collaboration with NGOs while training programmes were also prepared by retired Justice Nasir Aslam Zahid to revamp the Sindh police.

Besides other training and enhancing professional expertise programmes, the basic investigation handbook had been made a compulsory part of police training syllabus in investigation while MoUs were also signed for this purpose, the report added.

After examining the report, the bench observed that things were required to be mechanised so as to show purposes of MoUs.

The police report made an impression that the Sindh police had already been equipping its officials with latest ways of investigation, therefore, the bench said that it would be necessary to have details of those programmes.

Published in Dawn, November 26th, 2018