HARIPUR: As part of police reforms the provincial government had established the public safety commissions under the KP Police Act 2017 and their purpose was to ensure the protection of citizens from police excesses through civilian oversight, said Mohammad Sadaqat Hasan, vice-chairman of District Public Safety Commission, Haripur, while facilitating an orientation session.

Officials of different government departments and civil society organisations attended the session titled ‘role of public safety commissions in protection of human rights’.

Quoting different sections of the Police Act 2017, he said the District Public Safety Commission (DPSC), Regional Complaint Cell and Provincial Public Safety Commission were empowered to oversee the performance of police department in a way that the police-public relations were improved and those police officers and personnel accused of excesses could be held accountable under the law.

He said the Haripur DPSC had performed well and disposed of over 200 complaints, which showed confidence of people in it.

He said that under the law the commission was empowered to approve annual policing plan, review the police performance quarterly and check illegal confinement in police stations.

FACTORY WORKER DIES: A factory worker who was injured during a fire incident at a textile unit succumbed to his burn injuries.

Hattar police quoted factory workers as saying that two workers had suffered burn injuries in a fire incident in a room of a textile unit on Feb 6.

Police said one of them Gul Shireen was pronounced dead on arrival by doctors at Haripur Trauma Centre while the other one Amir Shehzad was referred to a hospital in Islamabad where he died on Monday night.

Published in Dawn, February 11th, 2021