Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet demanded of the federal government to withdraw the amendments made in the Criminal Procedure Code in 2001 to pave the way for the restoration of magistracy system in a meeting held with Chief Minister Amir Haider Khan Hoti in the chair on Tuesday.
Briefing the media about decisions made in the cabinet meeting, Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain said the provincial cabinet had already proposed certain amendments in the Criminal Procedure Code and was waiting for a response from the federal government. He said the provincial government would frame the legislation of the restoration of the magistracy system on its own. “Government will restore the magistracy system as it was on August 13, 2001,” he remarked.
The KP cabinet also approved the establishment of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Judicial Academy with a view to improve the performance of the judiciary. The Judicial Academy, he said, had been formed in accordance with clause 9 of the Judicial Services Rules 2001. Main office of the academy will be in Peshawar and its affairs will be run by a board of governors with chief justice of Peshawar High Court as its chairman. Most senior Judge of Peshawar High Court will be its vice chairman whereas additional chief secretary, secretary law, secretary finance, advocate general, additional registrar administration, member inspection team of Peshawar High Court, principal of Khyber Law College University of Peshawar, dean and director general of the Academy will be its members.
The cabinet also reviewed the text pertaining to the establishment of Regional Languages Promotion Authority and decided to table it in the provincial assembly. Mian Iftikhar said the Article 251(3) of the national constitutions allows legislation at provincial level for the promotion of regional languages. Minister for Elementary Education will be the chairman of the authority and its head office will be in Peshawar. The proposed law, he said, will be known as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Regional Languages. The secretaries of higher education, archives, finance, sports, culture and tourism will be its members. The authority will be responsible for the promotion of regional languages like Hindko, Saraiki, Kohar, Kohistani and others through educational institutions, general publications and others.
The cabinet also discussed the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Compulsory Elementary Education Bill 2011 and constituted a committee under the additional chief secretary for its further scrutiny. In accordance to the proposed bill, elementary education from class one to ten will be compulsory for children from ages five to sixteen.
The cabinet also discussed the training of unskilled youths and was informed that so far 1100 applications had been received whereas the program was meant for 1500 youths. Chief Minister Amir Haider Khan Hoti had directed maximum publicity of the scheme to enroll more youths and the provincial government had already allocated Rs 300 million for the scheme. In response to a question, Mian Iftikhar Hussain said in the first phase of the scheme, fifteen hundred youths from Peshawar and Malakand divisions would be trained whereas in the second phase will include youths from Hazara and Dera Ismael Khan. The cabinet also discussed the treatment facilities available to hepatitis patients. An amount of Rs 800 million would be spent on the treatment of Hepatitis C patients during the current financial years, reducing the treatment expenditure from Rs 67,000 to RS 12,000.
The provincial cabinet also decided to extend accidental health compensation of Rs 100,000 to the victims of gas leakage, electrocution, fire and mines. The cabinet was informed that PESCO had already been contacted for exempting them from paying their August and September 2010 electricity bills. The cabinet was also informed about the allocation of funds for the establishment of Directorate of Human Rights in the province.
