Nawaz orders ‘blanket action’ against criminals

Premier lauds development initiatives of provincial government

LAHORE:

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has ordered ‘indiscriminate action’ against miscreants to maintain law and order in Punjab. “There should be no compromise on taking action against the elements behind disrupting law and order,” he said during a high-level huddle at his Raiwind house.

Attendees at the meeting included Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, Home Secretary Major (retd) Azam Suleman Khan, Punjab police chief Mushtaq Ahmed Sukhera, senior provincial officials of the Counterterrorism Department and heads of other agencies.

The home secretary and the police chief briefed Premier Nawaz on the overall security situation in the province, an official told The Express Tribune. They also briefed him about different aspects of investigations into the recent cracker blasts in Lahore.

Measures taken for implementation of the National Action Plan were also discussed during the meeting, added the official.

PM happy with Punjab uplift schemes

Premier Nawaz lauded development initiatives being implemented by the Punjab government during another meeting he chaired to review the ongoing uplift schemes in the province.

He was briefed on different projects of potable water, rural roads network under a special project of the provincial government, and rehabilitation of water supply in urban Punjab.

“According to the Punjab Saaf Pani Company, only 13 per cent of the people in rural Punjab have access to clean water while 43 per cent of the people in the urban areas have access to tap water,” said a government official.

“PM Nawaz was informed by the meeting that the government would spend around Rs20 billion by 2017 for providing potable water to the people.”

An innovative project of installing solar-powered ATMs for dispensing potable water through smart cards is also being worked on, added the official.

“The Punjab government is spending Rs150 billion for constructing roads in the rural areas under a special package of the chief minister. The premier was briefed on this project as well.”

The premier appreciated the development projects being carried out by the provincial government and expressed satisfaction over the pace of work. Among the attendees were the interior minister, Federal Water & Power Minister Khawaja Asif and members of the Punjab Assembly.


Published in The Express Tribune, December 20^th, 2015.