LAHORE: Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has said the Punjab police will be equipped with “infrared and ultrasonic technologies” on the pattern of the Japanese law enforcers.

“The Punjab police will also be equipped with a meticulous system for traffic management, accident control and advance warning of weather conditions. In the first phase, a pilot project will be launched in Lahore,” Ms Nawaz said after she was briefed about the supervisory body of the Japanese police system during her visit to the National Police Crime Control Agency headquarters in Tokyo. “I will launch this project on my return to Lahore,” she added.

All departments of the Japanese police are attached with the National Police Crime Control Agency. It also determines departmental policies of the Japanese police.

The chief minister praised the National Police Crime Control Agency’s system and said that the law and order situation in Japan is worthy of emulation.

She said the police system in Punjab was being streamlined on the modern pattern. “The Punjab government has given a freehand to the Punjab police to perform its duties in a professional manner,” she said.

Opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf often accuses the chief minister of giving a “free hand” to Punjab police to target the party’s leaders and workers with impunity.

The chief minister says the law and order situation in Punjab has improved significantly because of establishment of the Crime Control Department (CCD). Recently, a number of suspects were killed in the “encounter” with the CCD, raising questions whether these were staged or real.

However, the CM credited the CCD for bringing the crime graph in Punjab below 70 percent. She also met with Senior State Minister of Japan for Foreign Affairs Miyaji Takuma at the Japanese Foreign Office.

“We always give importance to Pakistan as a friendly country,” Mr Takuma said and expressed regret and sympathy over the recent loss of lives in floods in Pakistan, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Ms Nawaz said Punjab wanted to benefit from Japan’s experience in combating earthquakes, floods and other natural disasters. “Japan’s help during the devastating [2005] earthquake in Pakistan is unforgettable. We thank Japan for supporting us in difficult times, we want to benefit from Japan’s construction technology to combat earthquakes,” the chief minister said.

Published in Dawn, August 21st, 2025