Islamabad               -         Interior Minister Brigadier (retd) Ijaz Ahmad Shah Friday said that the country has witnessed a gradual decline in terrorist activities allowing the government to embark upon initiatives to curb radical tendencies, extremism and intolerance in the society through people-to-people and people-to-state initiatives.

He made these remarks while addressing participants of the Command and Leadership Programme (CLP) 2020 at the National Defence University (NDU), said a statement issued by the Ministry of Interior.

The lecture was part of the series of talks and briefings arranged during the course. The director general Institute for Strategic Studies, Research and Analysis (ISSRA) of NDU, faculty members and the participants of the Command and Leadership Programme.

The minister dilated upon the prevailing internal security challenges and gave a comprehensive overview on the measures taken by the government to ensure safety and security in the country what he said that has been achieved through a coordinated response.

While talking about the country’s security situation, Shah presented a comprehensive overview of the National Action Plan (NAP) and National Internal Security Policy and reiterated that implementation of NAP was a priority of the government.

The interior minister said that the unprecedented success achieved against the scourge of terrorism became a reality due to national resilience, effective state policies and sacrifices of security and law enforcement apparatus. He, however, said that fight against drivers of terrorism was a continuing process that required a national commitment.

Shah said that the battle against terrorism has been won at an enormous human and financial cost and reiterated that the government was taking all possible measures to prevent the country from going into same abyss.

While dwelling on the current regional environment, the minister felt that Indian intransigence over Kashmir dispute has pushed her into a tight corner. “Now, their policy pundits are looking for a false-flag operation to divert domestic and international attention and unify the widening cracks within the divisive society.” He emphasized that the government stood shoulder to shoulder with Kashmiri brethren in this difficult time and supported the resolution of Kashmir issue as per aspirations of Kashmiri people and UN resolutions. “We stand prepared for all eventualities.”

He stressed on the significance of CPEC project and highlighted the measures taken to ensure the security of projects associated with it in the hinterland. He also talked about “Indian designs to derail the projects by aggravating law and order situation in Gilgit Baltistan and Balochistan.”