The MoU was signed at a meeting between Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and a Power China delegation in Islamabad. PHOTO: FILE
Hydro China Corporation, a subsidiary of Power China, will conduct a survey of energy resources in the province and evolve a master plan for their development under a memorandum of understanding (MoU) it signed with the provincial government on Tuesday.
The MoU was signed at a meeting between Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and a Power China delegation in Islamabad.
The meeting also decided to form a working group comprising senior officers from the provincial government and the Hydro China Corporation to formulate a roadmap for the completion of surveys.
Speaking to the media after the meeting, Sharif said that a new era of economic progress had begun in Pakistan with Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to the country. He said investment by Chinese private and public sector companies in Pakistan’s energy sector was particularly important in this regard.
Sharif also met a delegation of the State Grid Corporation of China. He discussed the details of a project under which the Chinese company would lay power transmission lines in the province. The chief minister assured the delegation that no delay would be tolerated in acquisition of land required for the project. He said the provincial government would extend complete support to the federal government in all its ongoing energy sector projects in the province.
Addressing the media after the Chinese president’s address to the joint session of the Parliament, Sharif said China had expressed its deep love and support for the country by committing cooperation in various energy, infrastructure and transport sector projects. He said Pakistan should now reciprocate by ensuring that there was no delay in completion of these projects. He said work should be carried out round the clock to ensure their timely completion.
The chief minister said that Pakistan could change its destiny with the $46 billion economic package announced for it by China. He said the historic visit of the Chinese president would be remembered by future generations. He said the agreements signed by the two countries would help create thousands of new jobs in the country.
Later, the chief minister also accompanied by the Chinese president to the airport.
Overseas Pakistanis
Overseas Pakistanis Commissioner (Punjab) Afzaal Bhatti said on Tuesday that presence of legal experts would be ensured in all district-level committees for overseas Pakistanis.
He was speaking at a meeting of the various district overseas committees from Faisalabad division. Divisional Commissioner Capt (retd) Naseem Nawaz, RPO Ehsan Tufail, Faisalabad DCO Noorul Amin Mengal, Jhang DCO Nadir Chattah, Toba Tek Singh DCO Waqas Alam and Chiniot DCO Shukat Ali Khan Khichi and MPAs Azad Ali Tabasum, Khurram Abbas Sial and Khalid Ghani were also present. Bhatti asked the members of the district committees to approach him with suggestions on ways to further improve the operations of the commission. He said district committees should meet every fortnight to ensure that all complaints registered with them were solved in an efficient manner.
The DCOs were asked to set up cells in their offices where overseas Pakistanis could submit their grievances.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 22nd, 2015.
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