KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah presided over a high-level meeting on Friday to discuss arrangements for the final of the Pakistan Super League, scheduled to be held at the National Stadium on March 25.
Inspector General Sindh Police A.D. Khawaja, Karachi Mayor Waseem Akhtar, DG Rangers, SSP Security Javed Mehr and National Stadium senior manager Arshad Khan, among other top officials were part of the meeting.
CM Murad, addressing the meeting, vowed to make the PSL final a success.
“We promised last year we will hold the final in Karachi. We have fulfilled that promise, now we have to make it a success,” he said.
The minister instructed the authorities to speed up construction work around the National Stadium while ensuring that the citizens do not have to face any hassle.
“The PSL is for our public, and therefore the public shouldn’t face any problems because of [the final match],” he said, as he ordered to make the public aware of alternative routes well ahead of the final in March.
CM Murad also instructed the relevant authorities to resolve residents’ issues, including lighting, water, parking sites, cleanliness and medical facilities.
IG Sindh A.D. Khawaja briefed the participants about the ongoing security preparations. He said that officials of the Sindh Police toured Lahore to review the security arrangements made for Pakistan vs Sri Lanka T20 match on October 29 last year.
He added that there was a close cooperation between all stakeholders.
The official said that CCTV cameras will monitor all routes to the National Stadium for the occasion. He added that an initial rehearsal will be held later today to go over preparations for VVIP movement, players’ arrival and other security measures.
SSP Security Javed Mehr said the IG Police has constituted a security committee comprising of officials from the police, Rangers and intelligence agencies who share information on a daily basis.
CM Sindh spokesperson informed that the chief minister has put together four committees, namely an executive committee (including Chief Secretary), a civil committee (including Mayor Karachi), an intelligence committee (comprising of intelligence officers), and a security committee (consisting of police and Rangers), in view of the PSL final.
Others who were present at the meeting included the health minister, sports minister, chief secretary, Additional IG Karachi, Airport Security Force, DIG East and DIG South.