Top Stories»
Nepal Police, AFP at odds over taking charge
- INDUSTRIAL SECURITY FORCE
KATHMANDU, MAR 29 -
It appears Nepal Police and the Armed Police Force (APF) are at loggerheads regarding which security agency between them will be leading the proposed Industrial Security Force (ISF). Interestingly, ISF, an initiative to provide security to the private sector businesses, has just been proposed and it is yet to be formed.
ISF ran into trouble before its formation after Nepal Police on Monday demanded that the proposed ISF should be under it.
Earlier, the government had announced that the responsibility of ISF will be given to APF.
Senior officers at Nepal Police said ISF must come under Nepal Police to ensure better security to industries as it has a long track record of handling security tasks.
Police officers also put forward a proposal to this effect at an interaction with the business community on Monday.
“Nepal Police is capable of providing better security as it has been closely associated with the industrial security for long,” said Nepal Police Spokesman Bigyan Raj Sharma. He, however, maintained that Nepal Police would uphold any decision that the government takes regarding the responsibility of ISF.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, while addressing the 57th annual general meeting of Nepal Chambers of Commerce (NCC), had said APF would be deployed for industrial security.
Senior APF officers have said APF has been carrying out several serious security-related tasks in a more professional way in the past and it should be given the responsibility of industrial security as well.
“Given APF’s better track record, the government should consider APF a better option to provide security to industrial sector,” said a senior APF officer on condition of anonymity. He added that APF has successfully carried out all the tasks given by the government. APF, which was formed during insurgency was tasked with countering the then Maoist rebels, has now been mandated to mine Nepal-India border and counter armed groups that have mushroomed in the recent past.
APF Spokesman Ajay Chhatkuli maintained APF was ready to take the charge if the government decides to assign APF with the job.
The private sector has been demanding formation of ISF for the last eight-nine years citing deteriorating security situation.
The Home Ministry has already forwarded a proposal regarding the formation of ISF to the Cabinet.
Home Ministry Spokesman Jay Mukund Khanal said that the proposal has not specified who will be leading ISF. “It is yet to be decided,” he said.
Posted on: 2010-03-30 07:43
Headlines
Advertisements
