House in session: Three ordinances introduced in the Punjab Assembly

Ordinances referred to standing committees, Assembly adopts condolence resolution over mine disaster in Turkey.

LAHORE:

Three ordinances recently promulgated by Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar were introduced in the Punjab Assembly (PA) on Friday, the first day of the eighth PA session, which started two hours behind schedule.

Speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal Khan presided the session.

All three ordinances were referred to the standing committees concerned for approval.

The three ordinances included the Management and Transfer of Properties by Development Authorities Ordinance, 2014, which was referred to the Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Development.

The second ordinance, The Bab-i-Pakistan Foundation Ordinance, 2014, was referred to the Standing Committee on Information for approval.

The third ordinance introduced in the assembly session on Friday was the recently promulgated Punjab Free and Compulsory Education Ordinance, 2014, which was referred to the Standing Committee on Education for consideration.

The committees will treat the ordinances as bills and they would later be presented in the House for their passage as acts.

Question hour

The question hour on the Excise and Taxation Department was entertained by Excise and Taxation and Finance Minister Mian Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman.

The question hour on the department was dominated by a debate on the sale and purchase of liquor by the hotels, licensing for same as well as the quantity of liquor that the hotels are allowed to sell.

The lawmakers wanted to know how the liquor industry was being run in the province and how much revenue it gave to the government.

Condoling loss of lives in Turkey

Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan tabled a resolution in the house to condole the loss of life of hundreds of coal mine workers in an explosion in western Turkey on Tuesday. When the house adopted the resolution, at least 283 miners had been confirmed dead, mostly from carbon monoxide poisoning, and hopes were fading of rescuing the 100 or so people still thought to be inside the mine.

The resolution adopted by the Punjab Assembly stated that the House was grieved over the death of so many mine workers in the tragic incident in a country that had always supported Pakistan in testing times. It said the government stood with the Turkish government in this difficult time.

Deputy Speaker Sardar Sher Ali Gorchani later chaired the session. He adjourned the assembly proceedings until Monday.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 17^th, 2014.