PM Imran for utilising govt lands for the welfare of masses

Imran directs Punjab officials to speed up efforts for early completion of court cases regarding govt assets

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has said the present government is firm on its policy of utilising state-owned properties for the welfare and betterment of the masses and using their income to boost the pace of economic development and creating job opportunities.

“The present government, which came to power in the hardest economic conditions, has taken difficult decisions to stabilise the economy,” said the prime minister while presiding over a meeting on the utilisation of government lands in Punjab for public welfare purposes, particularly, the assets under the control of Punjab Cooperative Board for Liquidation (PCBL) on Thursday.

The meeting was attended by Law Minister Dr Muhammad Farogh Naseem, Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar, Punjab Minister for Cooperatives Mehr Muhammad Aslam Bharwana, Punjab Law Minister Muhammad Basharat Raja, Punjab Chief Secretary Yusuf Naseem Khokhar and other senior officers.

Prime Minister Imran regretted that in a country where major chunk of economy and resources was used for repaying foreign debt, non-utilisation of government assets in the past in an effective manner, was a criminal negligence.

He directed the PCBL administration as well as the Punjab law minister to speed up the efforts for early completion of the court cases regarding government assets and take all necessary measures in that respect.

The prime minister said in order to provide relief to masses and speeding up the economic process, especially for creating job opportunities for youth, there was a need to further pace up the efforts.

PCBL Chairperson Bushra Aman gave a briefing to the prime minister. She said the PCBL had a total of 293 assets under its control, of which 98 assets consisting of agricultural, commercial and residential properties were immediately available for auction.

The worth of those properties was in hundreds of billions of rupees, while cases regarding the rest of the assets were pending in different courts, she added.

The PM was informed that the new PCBL administration had regained billions of rupees' assets from illegal occupation during the last six months.

Separately, the prime minister chaired a meeting on the availability of essential items in abundance and reduction in the prices.

Imran directed to give final touches to the proposals for providing essential items at the utility stores at a lower price so that relief could be provided to the people, saying it was the prime responsibility of the government to ensure, not only availability of essential items in abundance but also checking their prices.

“It is the responsibility of the state to ensure that no person goes to bed hungry,” said Imran, adding that the government was making all possible efforts to fulfill this responsibility.

Various proposals were presented in the meeting about the abundant availability of daily-use essential items like flour, ghee, sugar, pulses, and rice as well as to bring down their prices.

Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Social Protection and Poverty Alleviation Dr Sania Nishtar presented various proposals regarding the provision of essential items to low-income and downtrodden people under the Ehsaas Programme.

Utility Stores Corporation Chairman Zulkarnain presented proposals about the network of utility stores in the country and bringing a reduction in prices of essential items.

He said, “The utility stores have 4,000 outlets throughout the country which can play a vital role in availability of essential items in abundance and bringing down their prices.”

Minister for Communications Murad Saeed proposed that besides 4,000 outlets of utility stores, officers of the Pakistan Post in far-flung areas of the country could also be utilised for the purpose.

The meeting was attended by Saeed, Nishtar, secretary finance, secretary industries, secretaries communication, USC chairman, NITB CEO Syed Shahadat Ali Shah and senior officials.

(With additional input from APP)