Karachi, October 16, 2018 (PPI-OT): Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah approved poverty reduction strategy of Rs72.5 billion under which interventions would be made in education, health, water and sanitation and development t of internal village roads.
He took this decision while presiding over a cabinet meeting at 7th Floor of the New Secretariat. The meeting was attended by all the provincial ministers, advisors and the special assistants who were invited specially.
The Planning and Development with the assistance of EU after a hectic and two-year long survey and study has prepared a poverty reduction strategy under which rural and urban poverty would be reduced by making necessary interventions by upgrading villages. The villages would be given internal roads, water supply and drainage schemes, health facilities, vocational training and top of it a holistic approach would be made to improve quality of educational.
The chief minister said that the programme would be started all over Sindh and rural and urban poverty would be reduced by investing Rs72.5 billion during the next five years. This would be in additional to the already launched poverty reduction programmes and initiatives.
RBCs: The cabinet was told that with the assistance of the German Development Bank four state of art regional blood centers (RBCs) have been constructed at Sukkur, Jamshoro, Shaheed Benazirabad and Karachi.
Minister Health Dr Azra Pechuho told that the health department has no prior experience of managing the sophisticated blood centers, therefore they may be contracted out to experienced private sector organization under PPP mode.
The cabinet after receiving proper presentation by the health department approved to contract out RBC Jamshoro to Indus Hospital, RBC Sukkur to Sukkur Blood and Drug Donating Society, RBC Shaheedabad to Fatmid Foundation and RBC Karachi to Ziauddin Hospital.
PHE: Secretary Public Engineering department Syed Jamal Shah gave a presentation to the cabinet saying that in the light of Supreme Court of Pakistan Judgement they have prepared an action plan. The plan calls for transferring all the functions relating to water, sewerage scheme, including installation, operation and management of RO plants to Public Health Engineering department.
The cabinet approved transferring of all the concerned staff of local government to PHE department. Under the plan 1572 schemes would be operated and the salaries of the staff would come to Rs642 million. The cabinet approved the plan and directed chief secretary to implement it. The cabinet also approved Rs500 million for transaction and placed at the disposal of the secretary PHED.
Forest: Additional Chief Secretary Forest and Wildlife Sohail Akbar Shah with the approval of the chief minister presented a restructuring plan of his department. The cabinet approved the proposed restructuring. Under the plan two posts of chief conservators of Forests (CCF), Grade BPS-20, have been created.
CCF Mangroves and Rangelands to look after the mangroves ecosystem and development projects of the department especially Green Pakistan programme. CCF Social Forestry to lookafter the social forestry wing of the department. Four positions of conservators of forest (CF) of grade BPS-19 have also been created to adequately support the CCFs.
He said that productive forests which include river wise and irrigated plantation spread over an area of 0.800 million acres. Similarly, Protective Forests which include mangroves and rangelands cover an area of 2.5 Million Acres. In this way our forests speared over an area of 3.3 Million Acres which constitute 8 percent of total land area of Sindh. “Therefore, restructuring of the department was vital to lookafter these forests and improve them further,” the secretary said. The cabinet approved the plan.
The chief minister told the cabinet that the provincial government has received an email from Gayness book for establishing a record of planting mangroves.
Fake number plates: Sindh Chief Minister taking serious note of using government number plates on private vehicles ordered a drive against the culprits. He said that he has seen that some people are using fake government number plates on their private vehicles, unregistered vehicles and vehicles taken from Nazarat. “This unacceptable and ordered Excise Minister Mukesh Kumar Chawla to launch special campaign them and report him.
SPPRA Rules: The Sindh Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (SPPRA) proposed some 30 amendments in their rules. The chief minister constituted a committee under Advisor Law Murtaza Wahab with secretary GA and other secretary as members to review the amendments and then bring them back in the next cabinet meeting.
Women protection against harassment : The Women Development department presented an Act called “Sindh Protection Against Harassment of Women at the workplace Act 2018. Secretary Women Development department Baqaullah Unar gave a presentation to the cabinet. The purpose of the bill is to make provision for the protection against harassment of women the workplace and address their issues through legal framework. The cabinet approved the bill and directed Advisor law to go through its clauses and send it to the assembly for approval.
ATC Judge: Sindh Cabinet on the recommendation of the recommendation of Chief Justice of Sindh High Court approved the appointment of Mr Munir Ahmed Khawaja, a retired District and Sessions Judge, as judge of Anti-Terrorism Court, Shaheed Benazirabad.
Press Briefing: Chief Minister’s Advisor on Information Murtaza Wahab brushing aside the impression of not cooperating with JIT constituted into money laundering said that the record whatever they were asking was being provided to them. He said that presently they have sought record of last 10 years. “The provincial government was collecting the record and it would be of a volumes and as soon as it is collected it would be handed over to the JIT.
Replying to a question about Omni Group, Murtaza Wahab said that he was not their representative to respond question about them, however he said they [Anar Majeed and AG Majeed] were out of Pakistan when cases were made against them. They came and appeared in the court from where they were arrested. “This is unprecedented in Pakistan that people are being taken into custody before proving allegations against them,” he said.
Replying to another question, he said that fake accounts being unearthed these days do not belong to the provincial government. The FIA says that the fake accounts were being operated from last many year. Where was the FIA when they were being operated and who stopped them from investigating them, he asked.
To another question, Murtaza Wahab said that Federal Water Minister Mr Faisal Wavda belonged to Karachi and like him President of Pakistan also belonged to Karachi and he urged them to given additional water of 650 MGD to Karachi so that water shortage issue could be resolved.
He said that PPP government in Sindh has started disbursing wheat in Thar. He said that as per NADRA record there were 208000 families to whom wheat at 50 kg per family was to be distributed but when CM Committee comprising provincial ministers Saeed Ghani, Imtiaz Shaikh and himself visited Thar they found that there were 880,000 families. Again NADRA was contacted and they provided another list of 67,000 families and all of them was being given wheat. Quoting DC Tharparkar, the chief minister advisor said that 76,000 families have been given wheat till today (Tuesday).
Giving an oblique reference of Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Murtaza Wahab said that he had contested election from Thar and always talked about the agony of people of Thar but what he had done for them. “Instead of going to Thar he went to Kabul and gave them wheat,” he said. He refuted the allegation of using luxury government vehicle. “As far as I know no provincial minister is using luxury government vehicle,” he concluded.
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