Eight buses impounded for violating corona SOPs

Rawalpindi : Regional Transport Authority (RDA) Rawalpindi teams inspected various buses and public transport vehicles (PSVs) at different routes and impounded eight buses in violation of Coronavirus Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) besides imposing fines amounting to Rs21,000.

According to a district administration spokesman, RTA officials checked the implementation of social distancing and wearing of masks by the passengers in buses and other PSVs vehicles and took action against the rules violators.

RTA teams on the directives of Deputy Commissioner Rawalpindi Muhammad Ali continued its ongoing campaign to check violations of SOPs. The DC urged the citizens to follow the SOPs and adopt all possible precautionary measures against coronavirus.

The district administration, including Assistant Commissioners, Magistrates, other officers and RTA teams have accelerated their raids against the violators, he added. The provincial government had imposed strict restrictions on public transport and business activities to control spread of the virus. To implement this, various teams led by Rawalpindi RTA Secretary Rashid Ali were conducting raids on PSVs on regular basis.

Over 950 street children rescued: The Child Welfare Protection Bureau (CPWB) Rawalpindi had rescued over 950 street children from different areas of the city during the period of last one year and reunited them with their families after necessary mediation.

District Officer CPWB Ali Abid Naqvi told this agency, that with the help of local Police around 100 children under 15 years of age, have been taken into custody during the last one month who were involved in begging in markets and on roads.

He said that they were later handed over to their parents after assuring authorities that they will not force them to beg. Ali said that at present seventy children were in the custody of the bureau who were being provided with the facility of food, education and shelter at the centre. He said the CPWB was searching for parents of 12 children who had been taken into custody during various rescue operations in the city.

“The management of the bureau made every effort to find the parents or relatives of the children on the basis of the telephone numbers, addresses and other information provided by them but could not succeed to trace yet,” he said. The CPWB district officer informed that most of the children were in the custody of the bureau for more than a year which includes Asad son of Juma Khan, Mohsin son of Unknown, unknown son of the unknown, Mastiq son of Jamil, Bilal son of Aslam, Ian son of Saeed, Qasim son of Ali Shah, Wahab son of Daulat, Talib Jan son of Shaheen Shah, Rahat son of Ghulam Haider, Abdullah son of Khameer, and Dil Faraz son of Mazhar.

Seven arrested, illegal weapons recovered: Rawalpindi Police in a crackdown against illegal weapons, conducted raids in different areas and rounded up seven persons besides recovering seven 30 bore pistols from their possession. According to a police spokesman, Naseerabad, Civil Line, Gujar Khan, Mandra, Jatli, Saddar Baroni and Rawat police on Saturday held Usama, Chan Zaib, Jamshaid Khizer, Daniyal Ahmed, Amir Sohail, Noor Muhammad and Toseef Younas and recovered seven 30 bore pistols and ammunition from their possession. Separate cases have been registered against all the accused while further investigations are underway, he said and added that police would continue their raids against lawbreakers and they would be sent behind bars.

Bike lifter arrested: Police have arrested a bike lifter and recovered three stolen motorcycles and other items from his possession.

According to a police spokesman, a team under the supervision of SHO, Ratta Amral Police Station managed to net an accused namely Sajid Ali who was a bike lifter and allegedly involved in several cases registered in different police stations. Police recovered three stolen motorcycles and other items from his possession. A case has been registered against the accused while further investigation is underway, he added.