LAHORE: Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz Sharif has set a three-month timeline for comprehensive police reforms and directed the inspector general of police and senior officers to personally contact citizens to obtain public feedback on policing.
Chairing a special meeting to review reform measures, she ordered that every citizen be addressed respectfully by police personnel and approved the installation of panic buttons outside all police stations to facilitate prompt redress of complaints. She also gave in-principle approval for audio and video recording of investigations, directing that minor complaints against police be resolved within two to three hours.
The chief minister approved funds for body cameras, directing that at least 10 officials in every police station be equipped with them, while 14,000 body cameras and 700 panic buttons would be installed across the province. She also ordered the introduction of online FIR tracking and a system allowing citizens to register FIRs online for lost documents and identity cards, while police would be permitted to ask five basic questions at the time of registration.
She instructed authorities to strictly enforce lane discipline in traffic and directed district administrations and relevant departments to ensure proper lane marking and public awareness on safe road-crossing practices.
The meeting also saw the launch of the Traffic Police One App and the Safe City Monitoring App.
During the briefing, it was stated that overall crime in Punjab had declined by 48 per cent and major crimes by up to 80pc, while reducing police response time to 8 minutes had lowered negative public feedback.
The chief minister said that perpetrators of violence against children deserved no leniency and emphasised that policing reforms are essential to restore public confidence. She stressed the need for a code of conduct, improved training, behavioural change, and respectful treatment of complainants, particularly women, adding that mobile police stations should reach women unable to visit police stations.
She reiterated that no citizen was less important than a VIP and said public dignity must be protected even during security arrangements. She also called for short, medium and long-term reform plans, introduction of citizen management and e-tag information systems, and training initiatives to familiarise college students with policing.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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