operation unit will be trained at army training centres on the patterns of the special services group and the anti-terrorist squad.
To build capacity of the new force, school and college will be set up to introduce operational, tactical and legal courses. The members’ salaries will begin from Rs50,000.
Besides, the members of the force will not be transferred to any other police department.
Their promotions will be based on performance and courses.
They will be stationed at a single place in separate police lines in well-fortified barracks having all facilities of lodging and bordering including training and recreational facilities.
Investigation unit
The investigation unit will have a team of 200 investigators. They will be selected through the Sindh Public Service Commission. Their salaries will start from 75,000. Some of the investigators will be inspectors from the regular police, having vast experience of handling terrorism cases. The investigators will be trained at the judicial academy and department’s schools and college. The unit will be responsible for intelligence gathering. It will encourage both horizontal and vertical flow of information from within the police departments, especially from police constables working on the ground.
This unit will also liaise, share and collect intelligence from all sister agencies to prevent terrorist activities.
Cyber crime unit
The cyber crime and data analysis unit will comprise a team of 10 experts and their leader. Its members will be qualified in handling cases of cyber crime. The team leader will have Master’s degree, preferably from a foreign university.
The cyber crime team leader shall be selected for a pay scale of grade-19, whereas the other members will also be given a competitive package.
The case for new dept
Presenting the arguments for the department’s formation in the report, the official noted that Pakistan ranked third on global terrorism, only better than Iraq and Afghanistan. In the last few years, terrorism-related deaths have increased by 37 percent and injuries by 28 percent. In 2013 alone, there were 71 cases of suicide bombing, causing 2,740 causalities.
It was noted that although the cases of terrorist attacks in Karachi constituted just 16 percent of the total, the dynamics of terrorism in Karachi were multifarious and became more serious because of the size of the city.
Karachi has an estimated population of 23.5 million and an area of 3,527 square kilometres with a population density of 6,000 square kilometres.
Keeping in view the ongoing Operation Zarb-e-Azb, there are strong possibilities that most of the terrorists from the upcountry have entered Karachi and formed sleeping cells.
The attacks on the airport, the PNS Mehran Base and the dockyard have exposed Karachi’s vulnerability.
The official stated that it was high time to revamp the Karachi police, imparting them with anti-terrorist skills and equipment so that the upcoming challenges could be met.