PM Imran urges Punjab, K-P govts to slash expenditures amid Covid-19 pandemic

Premier chairs high-level meeting over upcoming proposed fiscal budgets of Punjab and K-P for year 2020-21

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday urged the Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) governments to slash their non-development expenditures in line with the Centre's policy to ward off the adverse impact of Covid-19 pandemic on economy.

While chairing a high-level meeting over the upcoming proposed fiscal budgets of Punjab and K-P for the year 2020-21, the premier directed the PTI-led provincial governments to create job opportunities in the urban areas hit hard by the coronavirus crisis.

PM Imran said that due to Covid-19 pandemic, the world economies are facing unprecedented challenges and in the upcoming fiscal budget, the development expenditures needed to be enhanced to boost employment opportunities.

The meeting was attended by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Information Minister Shibli Faraz, Industries Minister Hammad Azhar, Minister for Planning Asad Umar, PM's advisers including Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, Abdul Razak Dawood and others.

Provincial chief minisiters Usman Buzdar and Mahmood Khan among other officials who were also present during the session.



During the meeting, the economic teams of chief ministers of Punjab and K-P presented detailed briefings on revenue, expenditures and priorities contained in their respective proposed fiscal budgets for the year 2020-21 and based upon ground realities.

Addressing the meeting, the prime minister underlined the need for specially prioritising those projects and their implementation which would create employment opportunities and move the wheels of economy rapidly.

For ensuring private sectors' participation to moot the national and provincial development requirements, he also emphasised upon the need for facilitation of private sector to accomplish projects under the public private partnership.

The premier also directed the provincial governments to specially focus on the development of industrial and agricultural sectors and received briefing on the priorities being given in the proposed budgets regarding the special economic zones and promotion of agricultural sector.

He also directed the provincial governments to pay special attention on the upgradation projects of health sector, "so that the general public could get quality health services".