Dolphin Force

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Dolphin Force
ڈولفن فورس
Dolphin Force Logo.png
Agency overview
Formed2016
Preceding agency
  • Mahafiz Force
Employees1800[1]
Legal personalityPunjab Police
Jurisdictional structure
National agencyPK
Operations jurisdictionPunjab, PK
Governing bodyPunjab Police
General nature
  • Civilian police
Operational structure
HeadquartersWalton road Lahore
Agency executive
  • Rashid Hadayat, SP Dolphin
Parent agencyPunjab Police
CM Punjab Shehbaz Sharif (35771008313).jpg
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Dolphin Force is an elite security unit of the Punjab Police to deal with street crime.[2][3] Modeled after the Istanbul Police Dolphin Force,[4][5][6] it was launched by the Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif in Lahore in the first phase and later in the five other major cities of the province in the second phase.[7][8] There were 696 policemen trained in the second phase.[9]

Organization[]

The Dolphin Force command centre will be headed by the SP[when?] and will be divided amongst Saggian Bridge, Iqbal Town, Harbanspura, Chung, Civil Lines and Model Town with 50 motorcycles each.[10]

In 2016, it was announced that this modern force will also be introduced in other metropolitan cities of Punjab, like Rawalpindi, Multan, Bahawalpur and Faisalabad. The plan was approved in 2017. Moreover, it was to be given a separate headquarter and an SP in every city, but the plan is yet to be executed.[11]

SP Dolphin Force[]

Since its establishment, the following superintendents of police have been appointed as Head of Dolphin force Lahore:

  • Bilal Zafar (PSP)
  • Aisha Butt (PSP)
  • Rashid Hadayat (PSP)[12]

Headquarters[]

Their headquarters is situated on Walton Road in Lahore.[13]

Operations[]

Two Dolphin Force officers patrolling the major road of Lahore

The force comprises 1,800 constables, 60 ASIs, 15 SIs, 4 DSPs and an SP who work 3 shifts with 300 motorcycles. The equipment includes 300 500cc Honda motorcycles, 10 minibuses for field support, 600 helmets, 600 camera-body cams, 200 GPS locators and 300 wireless radios. A special uniform is worn for dolphin patrol officials.

Two policemen riding each bike are equipped with helmets with wireless radio, small arm, handcuffs, GPS tracking device, camera and special uniform (black with contrasting red and white colours).[14]

Criticism and controversies[]

Mismanagement in the project[]

Despite spending one billion on the project, the Dolphin force was one of the most mismanaged and misplaced projects, therefore, known as the white elephant for the Punjab govt.[15] Instead of fundamental police reforms in Punjab and providing them infrastructure and resources the new force was raised. Few of such examples are following:[16]

  • Each officer was given a single piece of uniform, which he has to wear each day without opportunity to change it. The Rs 50,000 per piece parachute apparel was unfit for the warm climate in Lahore and was later replaced with cotton uniforms, wasting substantial public money.
  • A 500CC Honda heavy bike purchased for 1.0 million Rs each doesn't have any spare parts or repairing expertise; a minor fault in bikes resulted in parking them back without any replacements.
  • An expensive Helmet worth Rs. 35,000 containing Bluetooth; however, the equipment was not put to total usage. For example, the Bluetooth was never integrated to the central communication network.
  • With a salary as low as 22,000, several constables were found taking bribes and making monthly deals to provide safe passages to people on a regular basis. Four constables were dismissed after being caught red-handed.[17]

Street crime rate in Lahore[]

Despite spending billions on the project and its high operational cost, the crime rate of Lahore soared in early 2016,[18] during start[19] and mid of 2017,[20] only in July 2017 the crime surged by 13.37% in Lahore.[21] Although the project received continuous funds, it was unable to deliver in any form.[22]

References[]

  1. ^ "PC-I of Dolphin patrol force submitted to P&D". 14 February 2015.
  2. ^ Hassan, Waseem Riaz, Daniyal (2015-09-21). "Dolphin Force: Punjab government's white elephant?". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2018-01-19.
  3. ^ "Dolphin Force launched to tackle street crime". The Nation. Retrieved 2018-01-17.
  4. ^ "PC-I of Dolphin patrol force submitted to P&D". 14 February 2015.
  5. ^ "Turkish model: Punjab to have Dolphin Police unit, says CM". 31 May 2014.
  6. ^ Yunus Polis Timleri | Turkish Dolphin Police Teams |. YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-11.
  7. ^ "Dolphin Force launched in Faisalabad - The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 2017-10-24. Retrieved 2018-01-17.
  8. ^ Correspondent, The Newspaper's (2016-05-26). "Dolphin Force plan for Bahawalpur". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2018-01-17.
  9. ^ "Dolphin Force set to expand further: CM - The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 2017-10-22. Retrieved 2018-01-17.
  10. ^ "PC-I of Dolphin patrol force submitted to P&D". 14 February 2015.
  11. ^ "Dolphin Force to be extended to four other cities | Pakistan Today".
  12. ^ "Dolphin Squad, PRU exemplary crime-fighting forces: DIG | Punjab Police". punjabpolice.gov.pk. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  13. ^ Team, Trending (2018-01-26). "Dolphin Squad of Lahore gets a flashy new headquarters building". Trending Pakistan. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  14. ^ "PC-I of Dolphin patrol force submitted to P&D". 14 February 2015.
  15. ^ "Dolphin force Punjab Govt's white elephant? : The Dawn". The Dawn. 2015-09-21.
  16. ^ "Is Lahore's Dolphin Force a waste of public funds?: The Express Tribune". The Dawn. 2016-07-09.
  17. ^ "Dolphin force men arrested for bribe: The Dawn". The Dawn. 2016-06-17.
  18. ^ "Crime rate on the rise in Lahore? : Dunya TV". Dunya TV. 2016-12-01.
  19. ^ "Lahore spike in crime rate? : The nation". The Dawn. 2017-01-01.
  20. ^ "High crime rate in Sadar division lahore : The tribune". The Tribune. 2017-10-22.
  21. ^ "Crime surged by 13.37% in July, 2017 Lahore : The tribune". The Tribune. 2017-07-09.
  22. ^ "Despite receiving billions Dolphine force failed to curb crimes? : Dunya TV". Dunya TV. 2017-11-22.


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