The Punjab police’s Special Branch has been assigned the mission to carry out sting operations in wholesale and retail markets across Punjab to keep the prices of essential commodities at government’s notified rates and curb the phenomenon of hoarding and illicit profiteering during the upcoming month of Ramazan-ul-Mubarak.

The assignment was given by Punjab IGP Rao Sardar Ali during a wide-ranging meeting with the senior command of Special Branch at Roberts Club on Thursday. “The Special Branch should keep a close watch on illicit profiteering and hoarding so that those who make illicit profits from hoarding can be brought to the book and severely punished”, he directed and stressed upon implementation of the National Action Plan and accelerate actions against hate speech.

He said the Special Branch is a very important field formation of the Punjab police which plays an active role in maintaining law and order in the province through timely receipts of important information. He said that modern technology and resources would be provided to update working of Special Branch. He assured that recruitment of staff for all the vacancies would be completed at the earliest.

The IG also directed the senior officers to keep a close watch on the workings of field officers and personnel and send their reports in time so that the process of departmental accountability could be expedited.

The story was originally published in Business Recorder on March 25, 2022.