MNAs show optimistism about economic turnaround

Members of the National Assembly (MNAs) on Friday expressed confidence that the coalition government would soon be able to improve the ailing national economy due to the corrective measures it had proposed in the federal budget 2022-23.

Participating in the budget debate, Shahnaz Saleem Malik of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) termed the next fiscal plan balanced and people friendly and hoped that the coalition government would steer the country out of the ongoing economic crisis.

She held wrong economic policies of the previous Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, including the agreements it signed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), responsible for the sky-rocketing inflation.

Chaudhry Muhammad Ashraf of the PML-N said that the country was passing through a critical time but the government would hopefully tackle all the challenges with collective wisdom.

He asked for paying special attention to the development of agriculture sector on strong footing and introducing innovative ways of cultivation, besides reducing the cost of inputs and ensuring the appropriate rate of agricultural products to the growers.

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He also called for providing special incentives to the growers for installation of renewable energy generation plants for tube-wells and hybrid tractors to bring down the cost of inputs to make the local agricultural produces more competitive.

Shahida Rehmani of the Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) stressed the need for allocating funds in the federal budget for women’s development. She said that women’s participation in the parliamentary affairs would empower them constitutionally and socially.

She proposed withdrawal of some duties suggested in the budget on the import of raw materials used in manufacturing of women-related items. She also called for installing

The lawmaker drew the attention of the House towards climate change challenges and the increasing global warming. She hailed the abolition of tax on the import of solar panels, saying it would help reduce the reliance on costly energy.

Maulana Asmatullah of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal Pakistan (MMAP) highlighted the problems facing the public in his constituency, Quetta-I. He requested the government to provide the basic facilities like electricity and gas there.

Meanwhile, responding to a point of order, Federal Minister Javed Latif said that it was unfortunate that former prime minister Imran Khan spent around Rs 1 billion on his travel from Bani Gala residence to the Prime Minister House on a helicopter.

Water Resources Minister Syed Khursheed Shah said no doubt the country was facing a severe water shortage, but hoped that with the recent and upcoming rains, water levels in dams and rivers would significantly improve.

He said he would talk to the Sindh water minister to ensure the supply of water to the tail-end of different fields for irrigation purposes.