ISLAMABAD: Minister for Science and Technology Chaudhry Fawad Hussain on Monday said that equipping the police force with the latest technology was the greatest need of the time, not just to improve efficiency, but also to gain confidence of the general public.
In an interview, the minister said that in the era of social media and the speed at which information was currently shared, police must become earlier adopters of new technology in order to stay informed and continue to lead the communities they serve.
He said in a technologically advanced world where crimes have become more organized and fatal, governments have to be more proactive in order to counter wrong-doers and offenders and for that, modern technology has become the main pre-requisite.
He said the technology must be supportive of the governments in achieving good governance and bringing effectiveness and competence in their workings.
Talking about clean drinking water project which recently announced, he said Science and Technology Ministry has launched its very own mineral water scheme to slash costs at government offices.
The Pakistan Council of Research and Water Resources (PCRWR) has prepared a 500ml water bottle named “Safe Drinking Water”, the minister said.
In the first phase, Chaudhry said, it will be introduced at government offices after which it will be made available to the general public.
He said the PCRWR has collected water samples from around the country for the survey, adding that the ratio of salts in the water was examined in the survey.
He said ministry was introducing a system where on tehsil level government will build water treatment plants with the help of private companies.
Fawad Chaudhry said these plants would be established with easy installments loans to people so that cheap and safe drinking water could be available throughout the country.
He said almost 70 percent people were spending on health because of containment water issue which was badly neglected in the past governments, Pakistan’s water woes can largely be bifurcated into issues of quality and quantity.
Fawad explained that the water coming into our systems over the past decades hasn’t changed much, adding, but demand has soared due to an exponential rise in population.
However, Ministry of Science and Technology under the government umbrella with the help of PCRWR will soon provide cheat rate water for citizens.
Minister said that the step has been taken in light of the government’s austerity measures, adding, this bottled water will be a cheaper alternative to the mineral water that is currently available at government offices, he said.
The bottled water, called the ‘Safe Drinking Water, will cost Rs1 per litre, the federal minister mentioned.
app
