Lahore: A delegation of the National Commission on the Status of Women led by its chairperson Nelofar Bakhtiar called on Chief Minister Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar at his office on Wednesday and discussed matters of mutual interest.
The CM apprised the delegation about the steps taken for socio-economic empowerment of the womenfolk adding that 18 women workers hostels and 1221 daycare centres have been established across Punjab. Similarly, women development centres have also been established in universities for career planning and capacity building in addition to starting online training programmes for the women, he continued. Meanwhile, a helpline facility is provided to give necessary legal guidance for the solution of women related problems, he said. The government has also strengthened the Violence Against Women Center in Multan and such facilities will also be established in Rawalpindi and other districts to provide prompt institutional support to the women in need, he said.
The CM assured that the chairperson of the Punjab Commission on the Status of Women will be appointed soon and the government will also review resolving women related problems through a joint platform. I regularly review the problems of women detainees during field visits and the government is committed to providing facilities to prisoners through holistic reforms, he told. In this regard, necessary amendments will also be introduced to revamp the outdated system; the CM maintained and asserted that any mistreatment of the women prisoners will not be tolerated.
The CM directed Nelofar Bakhtiar and members of the commission to visit different jails. The PTI government is the custodian of the rights of women which are around half of the population, he observed. It has taken practical steps in this regard instead of making tall claims, he maintained. It is committed to giving equal rights as no society can progress without practical participation of the womenfolk in the national development process, the CM observed.
The government has also taken steps to protect women in public places and strict action has been taken against the incidents of harassment. The harassers do not reserve any leniency; he maintained and added that respect given to womenfolk in Quran and Sunnah is a guiding principle for all of us. The Punjab government will fully support the National Commission on the Status of Women, he added.
Nelofar Bakhtiar appreciated the steps taken by the Punjab government and stated that practical work has been done in Punjab to provide facilities to women inmates in jails. Law Minister Raja Basharat and others were also present.