Quetta to Get 2,900 Surveillance Cameras as Balochistan Orders Police Overhaul
Quetta to Get 2,900 Surveillance Cameras as Balochistan Orders Police Overhaul
The Balochistan government has approved the installation of 2,900 advanced surveillance cameras across Quetta under an integrated security project, in one of the biggest upgrades to the provincial capital’s policing in years. The decision came at a high-level meeting on security and policing chaired by Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti in Quetta.
The meeting also ordered a sweeping clean-up of the police force. Eight hundred and seventy-one police personnel were dismissed over absenteeism and negligence, while 1,005 officers deployed on the security of VIPs and influential personalities were withdrawn and sent back to the department.
What the Quetta CCTV cameras plan covers
The 2,900 cameras will be installed across Quetta under the Quetta Integrated Security Project, which officials also described as part of the Quetta Green Digital Corridor. The cameras are meant to modernise surveillance and strengthen the response to terrorism and street crime in the provincial capital.
The meeting approved additional stations for the Quick Response Force in Quetta. The Balochistan Police will also get advanced training, equipment and resources as part of the modernisation drive. The Additional Chief Secretary Home and the Inspector General of Balochistan Police briefed the meeting on the security situation in the province.
Chief Minister Bugti directed that non-development expenditures be kept under tighter control, with resources redirected towards projects of public benefit.
A long road for Quetta’s surveillance grid
The new camera plan revives an old ambition. Quetta’s Safe City project was first drawn up in 2016 with around 1,400 cameras, three scanners at city entrances, 300 kilometres of fibre-optic cable and integrated command rooms. It stalled for years amid contract disputes between Chinese vendors and administrative delays, with only a fraction of the grid ever becoming operational.
Officials said last week that 97 per cent of the old Safe City cameras had been restored and made fully operational, and that crime in Quetta had fallen sharply in two months. The 2,900 new cameras would more than double the city’s surveillance footprint.
Police told to back the force against terrorism
Bugti told the meeting that the police must get full backing if they are to fight terrorism. “If the police are deployed to fight terrorism, they must also be given full support,” he said.
Pulling 1,005 personnel off VIP duty is a notable step. Balochistan has long faced criticism that large numbers of police are tied up guarding officials and influential figures while ordinary policing suffers. Sending them back to the department is meant to put more boots on street duty.
The meeting was told that police modernisation would continue, with better training and equipment, as the province tries to hold recent gains in law and order.
Frequently asked questions
How many cameras will Quetta get?
The Balochistan government approved 2,900 advanced surveillance cameras for installation across Quetta under the Quetta Integrated Security Project.
Why were 871 police officers dismissed?
They were dismissed over absenteeism and negligence, as the government ordered a clean-up of the force alongside the surveillance upgrade.
What happened to police on VIP duty?
1,005 personnel deployed on the security of VIPs and influential personalities were withdrawn and returned to the department for regular policing duties.
What is the Quetta Green Digital Corridor?
Officials described the surveillance plan as part of the Quetta Green Digital Corridor, the framework under which the integrated security project is being executed.
