Punjab Assembly extends infections control ordinance

PTI govt presents demands for grant of Rs1.84 trillion

LAHORE: The provincial assembly on Wednesday unanimously approved extension of the Punjab Infections and Diseases Prevention and Control Ordinance 2020 during the budget session.

As the ordinance was set to lapse, Law Minister Raja Basharat presented a resolution to extend it. Lawmakers from both the treasury and opposition benches supported the resolution. If the resolution had not been passed, the actions taken by the health department against the coronavirus pandemic would have faced legal complications.

Meanwhile, the assembly formally started the procedure to pass the Punjab budget for 2020-21 as the government presented 41 demands for grant worth more than Rs1.84 trillion. The opposition moved cut motions on six demands for grant, including some about the food and agriculture departments that were rejected by the majority. The opposition also moved cut motions regarding demands for grant for the police, education and health departments but only those related to food and agriculture were discussed.

The cut motion on allocation for food department was moved by PML-N’s Bilal Yasin. Opposing the motion, Senior Minister Abdul Aleem Khan said it had happened only for the third time in the history of Pakistan that the farmers had been given full payment for wheat. “We set a target of 4.5 million metric tonnes wheat procurement for food security,” he said. He said the projects started by Speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi as chief minister had been halted by the previous PML-N government.

Agriculture Minister Nauman Langrial said there had been a bumper wheat crop in Punjab but the opposition was making hue and cry. He said Punjab had surplus wheat and it was being imported for other provinces only.

He added that the government was introducing new seeds to improve production, which would benefit farmers.

Speaking on his cut motion, Bilal Yasin said the price of wheat was Rs1,300 per maund and sugar Rs52 per kg during PML-N’s rule but they were much higher now. He added that Punjab used to supply wheat to other provinces and even Afghanistan when the PML-N was in power. Bilal Yasin was the provincial food minister in the previous government.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 25^th, 2020.