From Abid Usman
LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Monday launched ‘The Punjab Enforcement and Regulatory Authority (PERA)’ to curb inflation and encroachment.
Addressing the launching ceremony in Lahore, she said that the law should be applied on both the poor and influential. The chief minister said that the PERA has been established in just eight months for the welfare of the public. “Earlier, there was no dedicated force to control the artificial inflation and therefore this authority was established,” she said.
She revealed that some price control magistrates had hired private people who took bribes from the shopkeepers. “Public service is my duty, and we’ve turned this vision into reality. We needed a dedicated force to monitor prices, and that’s how PERA was conceived. We also carried out indiscriminate anti-encroachment operations across Punjab,” the chief minister said.
Maryam Nawaz said that encroachments had made markets narrow and congested, creating harassment risks for women. “We’ve made markets safer for women. PERA will begin operation in Lahore next week,” she added. According to chief minister, PERA will not just be a force, but a revolution.
The chief minister announced that PERA will consist of over 8,000 personnel and it will be provided huge funds. The chief minister highlighted that inflation, hoarding, and land mafias must be tackled head-on.
“Criminals are fleeing Punjab, and law and order have improved with the establishment of the Crime Control Department (CCD),” she said.
Earlier, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has established Pakistan’s first-ever dedicated Riot Management Police Force, marking a major milestone in law enforcement and crowd control in the province.
The new force has been created within the Punjab Police framework to protect the life, property, and safety of citizens as well as government infrastructure.
The CM said the protection of public life and property is her foremost priority. The cabinet officially approved the establishment of the Riot Management Police, which consists of physically active, capable, and agile officers, trained specifically to respond to volatile situations with professionalism. As per her directive, a comprehensive eight-week professional training programme was conducted for the first batch of personnel at the Police Training Center Farooqabad.
The training followed manuals from the United States, Turkiye, Europe, and other developed countries, and was delivered by experts trained in Turkiye.
During the passing-out ceremony, officers demonstrated exceptional crowd-control drills designed to safely manage violent protest scenarios.
The first phase of the Riot Management Police Force includes 5,000 personnel, out of which 3,000 have successfully completed training. These personnel will be deployed across Punjab’s regional headquarters, with 250 officers assigned to each region to ensure swift and organized response to unrest.