Law and order: Safe City Project to cover five cities, says Shahbaz

Chief minister approves establishment of Safe City Authority.

LAHORE:

Besides Lahore, the Safe City Project will be started in Multan, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad and Gujranwala, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said on Saturday.

He was speaking at a meeting on the law and order situation in the province that he chaired.

Among other steps, the meeting decided to set up a Safe City Authority.

“The Safe City Project is of special importance with regard to law and order. The protection of the life and property of the people is a responsibility of the state.

All steps are being taken in this regard,” the chief minister said.

The chief minister said that the Safe City Project should be started quickly.

Steps taken under National Action Plan were also reviewed at the meeting.

“The entire nation wants the elimination of terrorism, extremism and sectarianism. A decisive war is being fought against terrorism on all fronts. Immediate and effective steps are being taken in the Punjab under the National Action Plan Against Terrorism. The plan will purge the country of terrorism,” he said.

The chief minister directed officials to take steps to improve security at important places.

“Effective monitoring of security arrangements should be carried out continuously. The Cabinet Committee should regularly review the implementation of security arrangements and monitoring system,” he said.

Shahbaz Sharif directed the cabinet committee to immediately prepare a draft law for establishing the Punjab Safe City Authority. He further directed that action be continued against wall-chalking, distribution and publication of literature spreading religious hatred and against violations of the ban on use of loudspeakers.

Ministers Col (retd) Shuja Khanzada and Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman, MPAs Rana Sanaullah and Zaeem Hussain Qadri, Special Assistant Rana Maqbool, Lahore Transport Company Chairman Khawaja Ahmed Hassaan, the chief secretary and the inspector general of police attended the meeting.

Oil and ghee prices:

Meanwhile, the chief minister directed the authorities concerned to take steps to ensure the provision of vegetable oil and ghee to the people at the fixed rates.

He chaired a meeting of the Price Control Committee through video link. He said that the prices should be displayed on each oil and ghee pack.

“Effective monitoring should be carried out for provision of quality vegetable oil and ghee at the rates set by the government. All departments should coordinate over the issue,” he said.

He said that the Price Control Committee should regularly review the prices of edibles. “Capacity-building at government departments is the need of the hour,” he said.

The chief minister directed ministers and secretaries to visit all districts and check prices and quality of oil and ghee.

The industries secretary briefed the meeting about the steps taken to ensure the prices of oil and ghee were reduced.

Ministers Bilal Yasin, Chaudhry Muhammad Shafiq and Malik Nadeem Kamran, MPA Dr Ayesha Ghaus Pasha, the chief secretary, Lahore Division commissioner and the Lahore DCO attended the meeting.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 12^th, 2015.