Maryam Nawaz initiates a three-month strategy to reform the Punjab police.

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has unveiled an extensive strategy to overhaul the provincial police, imposing a stringent three-month deadline for officers to execute a range of modernization initiatives designed to enhance public service and accountability.

A high-level conference led by the Chief Minister approved various initiatives, including the installation of panic buttons outside police stations, the implementation of video and audio recording during investigations, and the initiation of an online FIR monitoring system.

The plan entails the installation of 14,000 body cameras and 700 panic buttons throughout the province, with each police station equipped with body cameras for 10 officers. Moreover, residents would have the capability to register FIRs for misplaced identification cards and documents via the internet.

The Chief Minister underscored the necessity for all police officials to address residents with respect, use “Sir” as a customary salutation, and mandated the eradication of discourteous behavior at checkpoints.

Minor grievances are anticipated to be addressed within 2–3 hours, police will routinely collect public feedback, and traffic management will be optimized by the newly introduced Traffic Police “One App” and Safe City Monitoring app.

A briefing disclosed that Punjab has experienced a 48% decrease in total crime and an 80% fall in severe offenses.

The average police response time of 80 minutes has mitigated adverse public feedback, with almost 16.8 million individuals attending police stations each year.

Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif stated that only offenders should apprehend the police—not the general populace. She emphasized that there will be no concessions regarding the safeguarding of women and children, asserting that no citizen holds lesser significance than a VIP in Punjab.