RAWALPINDI: Replacement of the old traditional uniform of Punjab police with the olive green one in 2017 was criticised both in and outside the police. Now the provincial government has decided to change the olive green uniform with sky blue shirt and navy blue trouser in the next fiscal year.

Justifying the changes in the uniform, a senior police official told Dawn that some quarters showed their reservations and believed that the olive green uniform had similarity with that of paramilitary forces. The police uniform should be of a distinctive colour, he added.

“Now there are two choices with the police while selecting the new uniform: either to return to the old traditional black/khaki uniform or change the colour to the one which is recognised internationally such as that of the Islamabad police uniform,” the official said.

He added: “The new colour has not yet been decided but it will be possibly sky blue shirt and navy blue trouser with a cap similar to that of the Islamabad police.”

He said the new uniforms would be purchased in the next fiscal year so it would not put a financial burden on the government.

New colour has not yet been decided but it will possibly be sky blue shirt and navy blue trouser with cap similar to that of Islamabad police, official says

There were two choices - whether to purchase olive green uniforms or go for the change of cloth and its colour - and the provincial authorities decided to change the colour and cloth.

Whenever police contingents are sent to join the UN peace missions, they wear the ICT police uniform as it is internationally recognised. Therefore, the colour of the uniform will be similar to that of the capital police.

Officials below the rank of inspector will be provided T-shirts for summer while officers above the rank of inspector will be wearing blue shirt and navy blue blazer in the winter.

The introduction of the olive green uniform in the police in July 2017 was criticised both in and outside the police. This led to the constitution of a seven-member committee by the then Inspector General of Police (IGP) Arif Nawaz Khan to carry out a survey regarding acceptance of the new olive green uniform.

A debate had also started in the police circles about the olive green uniform as some senior officers termed its wearing “miserable” especially while working in the field in the summer.

The olive green uniform contained a two-pocket shirt, four-pocket trouser and a cap costing Rs1,950.

A police official, who requested anonymity, said they did not just want the blue uniform similar to that of the Islamabad police but also wanted salary equal to that being paid to the capital police.

Published in Dawn, March 9th, 2019