R AWALPINDI: The City Traffic Police have asked the commissioner to rename Committee Chowk after Shahid Sarwar, a traffic warden who died on duty at Committee Chowk a year ago.

In a letter to the Rawalpindi commissioner on Thursday, Chief Traffic Officer (CTO) Mohammad Bin Ashraf sought for Committee Chowk to be renamed Shahid Sarwar Shaheed Chowk after the warden, who died there on June 12, 2018.

Mr Ashraf said the Punjab government has already acknowledged his sacrifice and declared him `shaheed`. A notification in this regard was issued on May 31, making Sarwar the only official from the Rawalpindi City Traffic Police to be declared a martyr.

In view of his sacrifice, the CTO said, the intersectionshould be renamed.Regional Police Officer (RPO) Mohammad Ahsan Fufail also distributed Shaheed Packages among the families of police officials killed in the line of duty at his office.

He said that some 60,000 Pakistanis, including 4,000 armed forces personnel and 1,500 police officials from the rank of deputy inspector general of police to constable have embraced martyrdom, and martyred police officials are the pride of the police department and their heirs are police family.

He said he would make sure that built homes were allocated to the heirs of martyred police officials, and distributed cheques among them.

The Punjab government has issued a notification about official declarations of police martyrs, as families of martyred officials can receive their full pay and allowances until their date of retirement and their children receive free education.Salaries of police officials who have died in the line of duty in Rawalpindi were stopped by the police department, which was waiting for a home department committee report that declared the officials martyrs and would allow their families to receive their dues and financial benefits, which took several months to decide.

According to the notification, the legal heirs of an assistant subinspector or sub-inspector who has been declared a martyr will receive Rs22.5 million, while the heirs of constables and head constables will receive Rs17.5m including Rs13.5m for a house.

The heirs of an inspector or deputy superintendent of police will receive Rs31m, the heirs of a superintendent or senior superintendent of police will receive Rs38m while heirs of a deputy inspector general and above will receive Rs60m, including Rs50 for a house.