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Tuesday March 19, 2024

Collaborated efforts for effective eradication of narcotics stressed

By Our crime correspondent
January 23, 2019

Rawalpindi : A high-level 12th Inter Agency Task Force (IATF) meeting amongst all Law Enforcement Agencies of Pakistan was held at Headquarters Anti-Narcotics Force, Rawalpindi, Tuesday.

The meeting was chaired by Captain (r) Arif Nawaz Khan, Secretary Ministry of Narcotics Control and organized by Major General Muhammad Arif Malik, Director General, Anti-Narcotics Force, Chairman, IATF.

Meeting was attended by Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), Pakistan Coast Guards (PCG), Airport Security Force (ASF), Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA), KP Secretariat (formerly FATA Secretariat), Pakistan Rangers (Punjab), Pakistan Rangers (Sindh), Frontier Constabulary Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (FC KP), Frontier Corps (FC) Balochistan, National Highways & Motorways Police (NH&MP), Pakistan Railways Police, Punjab Police, Sindh Police, KP Police, Baluchistan Police, Gilgit-Baltistan Police, Excise & Taxation Sindh, Excise & Taxation Balochistan, Excise & Taxation Gilgit-Baltistan, Excise & Taxation AJK and Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Secretary MNC Captain (r) Arif Nawaz Khan and DG ANF Major General Muhammad Arif Malik HI (M) welcomed the participants of the meeting.

Main objective of the meeting was to ponder upon prevailing challenges, synergize counter narcotics operations, fine tune coordination and cooperation among LEAs for effective drug control and to accrue maximum benefits from the jurisdiction of respective departments.

During meeting, the performance of all LEAs for year 2018 was presented which was analyzed by other members of IATF. The forum was also briefed about ANF performance which was warmly lauded by all IATF members. Action upon decisions made during last IATF meeting were also reviewed.

During conference, importance of collaborated efforts for effective eradication of narcotics was highlighted and emphasis was laid on formulating joint mechanism in this regard. During discussion, need to further improve cooperation amongst all LEAs in different fields e.g.

Integrated Border Management System (IBMS), information sharing, Drug Awareness Activities, evolution of IATF as statutory body with its functional secretariat at HQ ANF, training of IATF member agencies officers at ANF Academy, emerging narco-trends, legal issues and capacity building were urged.

At the end, Secretary MNC Captain (r) Arif Nawaz Khan and DG ANF Major General Muhammad Arif Malik HI (M) appreciated performance of all LEAs despite capacity and resources constraints. They also appreciated energetic participation of IATF member agencies in meetings and gave directions for frequent counter-narcotics mutual interaction at provincial as well as federal levels.