PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Local Government, Elections and Rural Development Sardar Faisal Amin Gandapur on Tuesday paid rich tributes to the municipal employees across the province for ensuring the best arrangements in providing hygiene and drinking water facilities to the people during Eid-ul-Fitr days.

He also lauded the performance of Secretary LG Syed Zaheer-ul-Islam Shah in this regard and said that since he has taken charge of his post, he has given new breath to the Local Bodies Department and working of LG staff in the entire province including the merged districts. He expressed these views during a special meeting with the Secretary Local Government at his office, Local Government Secretariat, Peshawar.

Sardar Faisal Amin Gandapur clarified that the present PTI-led provincial government under the leadership of Chief Minister Mahmood Khan believed in selfless service to the masses and well employed the policy of reward and punishment. “We will continue to encourage and uphold the dignity of the people in all respects, while we will not hesitate to reprimand the officials committed negligence in the public service”, he added.

He acknowledged that TMAs, Area Development authorities and water and sanitation companies (WSSCs) operating in all cities across the province, including the merged districts, have been engaged in sanitation works not only during Eid-ul-Fitr but also during the holy month of Ramadan while its staff performed its obligations as a religious and national duty and established high standard of excellence even at the level of town and village councils, and hence Iocal bodies made its presence felt in the public, which is a welcome development, the minister exclaimed.

He said that he not only himself reviewed the performance of the municipal staff in different cities but also received feedback from the citizens continuously in this regard. The Minister reiterated the pledge of the provincial government that the working conditions of the municipal employees would be further improved and they would be provided with modern machinery and equipment without making shortage of resources a hurdle in the way.

He said after the annexation of FATA into KP, the launch of municipal services in the new districts apart from many other sectors is not less than a challenge for the provincial government but under the dynamic leadership of the Chief Minister, all these merged districts are on the path of rapid development.

The Minister on this occasion also directed to prepare a comprehensive master plan for the introduction of modern machinery in all the local government services including the merged districts, especially for recycling millions of tons of city garbage on scientific basis.