The unprecedented double-digit inflation and unemployment have been fueling the rate of street crimes.

The irony is that most of the incidents of street crimes now take player in broad day light. There have been a large number of street robberies in Karachi in the past, but during the last few years, the way the robbers have been fearlessly targeting the victims with pistol bullets on resistance during dacoity and robbery bids, has never been seen before. 

According to authoritative sources, in the first three months of this year, 55 people were killed as a result of resistance to robbery, compared to 126 last year and 111 in 2022. Contrary to the government's efforts and steps of controlling the situation, crimes are not decreasing, but increasing. It means that the criminals have become highly sophisticated and as such something extra needs to be done to combat them.  IG Sindh Ghulam Nabi Memon has admitted in a conversation with the media that the incidents of killing and wounding on resistance are increasing.  According to him, 400 incidents of street crime are reported daily and 80,000 annually in Karachi. Describing street crime as a major challenge for the police, he claimed that strict crackdown on criminals is ongoing, many suspects have been arrested, 64% of cases of killing citizens during robbery have been traced and 67 officers have been allocated for investigation. The provincial police chief acknowledged the increase in vehicle theft and drug trafficking and assured that steps are being taken to improve police performance. However, the police chief have been making such claims before, but instead of improving the situation, the situation is getting worse.

As a matter of fact, street criminals: the bigger threat in urban centres. Street crimes are the problem of all major cities of the country, and like other big urban centres, the situation in Karachi is also serious.  Mobile phones are being snatched from the front of people's houses in populated settlements. Bank withdrawers are also easy targets for robbers. Due to the lack of work on the Safe City Project, the police could not find the videos of most of the incidents.  According to the police, most of the arrested accused have been arrested before, but after being released on bail, they become active again. Without merit. Deploying officers is one of the main reasons for not controlling crime.  Some analysts say that  some crime-sponsors join the ranks of policemen and officers. In this month, 56 officers and personnel have been dismissed for the same reason, but after the complete overhauling of the police department, without building the entire system on the basis of transparency and competence, it is not possible to end the increasing crimes in the city.  The newly elected provincial government has to include this matter in his top priorities. What we call looting has been the easier and safer way for the street criminal to decam with the booty.

The availability of easy black markets of stolen mobile phones, valuables and jewelery is also a reason to boost the morale of criminals. It is said that when people move to big cities in search of livelihood, the crime rate goes up along with the population pressure. Although street crime exists in many small and big cities of the country in one form or another, but in Karachi, the largest city and commercial center of Pakistan, street crimes have increased so much that people are targeted by criminals despite all precautions. On the average, around one hundred and thirty street crimes are reported every day since the start of the holy month.  Every few minutes, a Karachiite loses valuables including mobile phones and cash. The alarming thing is that the suspects do not even delay in firing during the incident on resistance, due to which the people visiting the markets are scared.   Over the past years, if not decades, the situation of street crimes in the megapolis is that it is difficult to find every other citizen who has not fallen into the hands of street criminals at least once. From pedestrians to motorcyclists and car riders, everyone is a target for criminals.  According to police,  street crime increased by 7 percent last year, however, the Karachi has the low number of killings on resistance during street crimes as compared to other cities. A police data shows that a hundred citizens lost lives on resistance during street crimes in the city. During the first month of the current year, over seven thousands street crimes were reported and the trend is continued till now. It is not that police do not take action and around nine thousand suspected street criminals were arrested last year while 110 suspects were arrested for extortion and over five thousand car-snatchers were held.

According to another data by Citizens-Police Liaison Committee (CPLC) report on the soaring number of motorcycle and carjacking cases are a common occurrence in the mega city where stolen vehicles are sold at ease in specified markets where robbers thrive on by taking main share of the booty.    The automobile parts of stolen vehicles are also easily available in the city at low prices and there is no check on the such business. On the other hand, the citizens say that most of the street crimes go unreported and people avoid getting caught by the police. People have to visit the markets for the essential purchases, but most people seem scared.  Police officials say that plainclothes personnel have been deployed at various locations, but the seriousness of the situation requires that CCTV cameras be installed and continuous monitoring through them should also be paid attention to.  Citizens say that most of the street crimes go unreported and people avoid getting caught by the police.  Be it poverty, economic crisis or the unprecedented inflation, Pakistan's most populous city has become a hotbed of street crimes once again. The residents of Karachi, a city with a population of more than three crores, are again at the mercy of robbers these days. Armed robbers roam the city. They rob whomever they want, when they want and where they want, including the elderly and women, and do not hesitate to kill on resistance.  Experts also point to the economic situation and social inequalities as the main reasons for the rising crime rate in the city. Economic depression, social inequalities are also the factors. One would agree with Chairperson of the Department of Psychology, University of Karachi , who says  that poverty and unemployment are major causes of street crime among economic factors.