GILGIT: The Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) has been made operational in Gilgit-Balt­istan and a dedicated CTD police station has been formally established in Gilgit.

In a statement, GB Police said the CTD had begun work with 250 officers and personnel, while recruitment for another 600 posts would be completed during the current year to strengthen the unit’s capacity.

The statement said assistance would be sought from Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for basic training and professional skills development of CTD personnel in GB.

SSP Tanveerul Hassan has been appointed head of CTD Gilgit-Baltistan. All counterterrorism-rela­ted FIRs registered so far have been transferred to the CTD police station in Gilgit.

Mr Hassan said the CTD had four wings, including investigation, intelligence and operations, and would handle terrorism-related cases across the region.

He said the case relating to Thursday’s attack on a Frontier Works Organi­sation (FWO) vehicle in the Tangir valley of Diamer had been registered with the CTD.

The federal government had approved the establishment of a CTD unit in Gilgit-Baltistan in September last year, authorising the creation of 613 new posts to combat terrorism and violent incidents, particularly along the strategic Karakoram Highway (KKH).

However, federal and regional officials were facing funding challenges, with recurring expenditure for the new posts placed on the resource-strapped Gilgit-Baltistan governm­ent and uplift funds for construction deferred until the next fiscal year.

A Central Development Working Party (CDWP) meeting on July 25, 2025, reviewed the GB government-sponsored project, titled “Raising of CTD police in GB”, estimated to cost over Rs1.5 billion. The initiative followed a directive by the prime minister to establish the CTD in GB within six months.

According to official documents, the project aims to enhance the capacity of GB Police by addressing “critical gaps in human and technical resources” to enable effective responses to terrorist incidents and comprehensive investigations. The Ministry of Kashmir Affairs, Gilgit-Baltistan and States and Frontier Regions is to sponsor the project.

The Ministry of Planning had cited “reduced fiscal space in PSDP” and a “substantial” existing financial commitment to GB as reasons for delays.

Published in Dawn, February 14th, 2026