A day after a sacrilege incident was reported in Morinda, Punjab Police on Tuesday conducted a special checking at all religious institutions, including Gurdwaras, Temples and Churches to review the security arrangements and make sure that closed-circuit Television (CCTV) cameras are installed and working to ensure security at these places and keep a strict vigil on mischievous elements.
The checking was conducted in all 28 Police districts of the state on the directions of the state Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav.
The state’s Special DGP, Law and Order, Arpit Shukla said that Commissioners of police (CPs) and the Senior Superintendents of Police (SSPs) were directed to depute one team under an additional Station House Officer (SHO) of each police station to visit all the religious places in their jurisdiction and hold security review meetings with the members of management committees.
At least 549 police teams, involving 2,800 police personnel, carried out checking at as many as 7612 Gurdwaras, 2236 Temples and 795 Churches across the state, he added.
Shukla also urged management committees of all the Gurdwaras, Temples and Churches to always remain alert and vigilant to prevent any untoward incident at their respective religious institutions. He asked them to ensure weekly checking of CCTv cameras to make sure that they are in working condition. He also advised the management committees to depute security guards at the entry gate of their respective religious places.
Meanwhile, CPs or SSPs are also directed to increase police patrolling around all the religious places to intensify surveillance on anti-social elements.
Punjab Police competent to deal with any sort of untoward situation: CM
Days after the arrest of pro-Khalistan preacher Amritpal Singh after a month-long chase, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday said that it is a matter of great pride and satisfaction for all that the Punjab Police was fully capable of dealing with any type of untoward situation arising in the State.
The Chief Minister, chairing a review meeting with the officers of the Punjab Police, said that the state police force is professional and fully competent to handle any law and order situation within the State. “Punjab Police has dealt with terrorism effectively in the past, which speaks volumes of its professional capability,” he said, adding that in future also, the force will carry forward this legacy.
Mann expressed hope that the Punjab Police will uphold its glorious tradition to perform their duty with utmost zeal and professional integrity.
The Chief Minister further asserted that Punjab Police has always played a vanguard role in the security of the country besides deftly maintaining the law and order situation in its every nook and corner. Likewise, he said that it is a matter of great pride and satisfaction that the Police personnel have always upheld the tradition of making unparalleled and supreme sacrifices while performing their duty to maintain the national integrity besides strengthening the bonds of communal harmony, peace and brotherhood.
Mann said that the great heroes of Punjab Police have rendered exemplary services to uphold the rich legacy and ethics of the state Police force.
Dwelling on another agenda, the Chief Minister underscored the need for modernization of Police on scientific lines. “Apart from discharging its core duty of maintaining law and order, the Punjab Police has always safeguarded the interests of the country and its people. In the changing scenario, the challenges for the force have increased manifold due to which modernization is the need of hour to combat them effectively,” he said.