Pakistan top investigation agencies have agreed to increase co-ordination in facilitating passengers at the international airports. Sources told Business Recorder here on Saturday that the Secretary Revenue Division and Chairman CBR Abdullah Yusuf convened a special meeting on passenger's facilitation emphasising on steps for speedy clearance of their baggage and other necessary formalities at the airports.
The 'inter-agency co-ordination meeting' was attended by the representatives of the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF), Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), immigration, Airport Security Force (ASF), four collectors of customs and an official from the Ministry of Defence.
The meeting, which continued for over three hours, also discussed the revival of the 'green channel' facility at the airports. Sources said that all the agencies submitted their working papers along with the suggestions to minimise interaction with both the incoming and outgoing passengers. It was agreed that the ANF should only check the suspected passengers to avoid delay in smooth clearance of the incoming passengers.
Some of the eyewitnesses told this scribe that the ASF staff for the checking of the cars near private car parking of the Islamabad airport, were asking unnecessary questions from passengers' relatives/friends, who were there to receive them.
The ASF staff demanded the Computerised National Identity Card (NCIC) Numbers from certain persons, who were there to take home their friends and relatives.
The persons, who came to the airport to meet their relatives from Gilgit were deliberately stopped by the ASF staff at the first checking point which wasted the time of foreign tourist and created bad image of Pakistan.