QUETTA, March 1: Chief Minister Jam Yousuf has said strict security measures have been taken to check illegal border crossings.

Talking to reporters here after arriving from Karachi, he said: "We are discouraging illegal border crossing from both the sides." He refuted reports that the measures were taken to hunt down Osama bin Laden.

He said that government had adopted strict measures to maintain law and order in the province, which helped in reducing the crime rate. The chief minister said that operation against poppy cultivation was also in progress.

The government would not allow poppy cultivation in the province and the law violators would be dealt sternly, he added. He criticized those who were opposing the development works in the province, saying that such people were responsible for the backwardness of Balochistan.

The chief minister said that in democracy every party or leader has the right to express views or register protest, but it should not be against the Constitution and democratic norms.