Punjab, Sindh, ICT: Fafen report reveals understaffing in police stations

Sanctioned posts for male staff were found vacant in police stations in Punjab, Sindh and Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) during the October-December 2011, says a Free and Fair Election Network (Fafen) report. However, police stations monitored in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan had more staff than the sanctioned strength. Fafen observers visited 131 police stations in 71 districts of the country during the quarter.
According to the report, the occupancy rate of male staff in Punjab was 78 percent with 3,114 positions out of the sanctioned 3,993 occupied. In Sindh, this rate was 69 percent - 1,320 posts out of the sanctioned 1,905 filled while in ICT it stood at 35 percent as only 49 slots out of the sanctioned 140 were occupied.
On the other hand, the occupancy rate in KP and Balochistan was 102 percent and 116 percent, respectively - appointments on deputation from other government departments is the probable reason for the higher number of staff in these regions. All the sanctioned posts for female staff were occupied in the monitored police stations. About 24 percent of the police stations observed were not housed in proper buildings while 40 percent were operating out of buildings in dilapidated condition.
At least 90 percent of the police stations had wireless and electricity connections, fans and latrines; all but one had vehicles while 92 percent were also getting fuel from the relevant department. People at 22 percent of the police stations complained the Investigating Officers sought logistical support from them for performing their official duties of investigating registered cases.
Similarly, people at 22 percent of the monitored police stations said they had to pay bribes for registering First Information Reports (FIRs), while at 18 percent of the stations, they complained of police seeking non-fiscal benefits. Police were seen turning people away at the gate at 18 percent of the police stations. However, at 92 percent of the police stations, the police dealt politely with citizens, while at 94 percent of the stations, they facilitated people in registering FIRs.
Only 68 visits by government/elected officials were made to the police stations covered during the monitoring quarter. Of these, 39 were made in Punjab, 17 in Sindh, six in Balochistan and five in KP. Non-compliance with Access to Information Policy was also observed. Despite the adoption of this policy by the Punjab government in 2006 and Sindh in 2007, SHOs in 40 percent of the police stations in Punjab and 26 percent in Sindh were not aware of it. In at least 50 percent of the police stations there was neither an Information Access Officer nor a separate register maintained for filing information requests.
Meanwhile, some SHOs expressed their unhappiness for being understaffed and lacking facilities like logistical support, fuel, stationery, clean drinking water and electricity connections. They also cited low salaries and strenuous work hours as the reasons for their dissatisfaction.