LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday said that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government was spending billions of rupees on priority basis for development and prosperity of southern Punjab.
Talking to MNA Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar, he said that the PML-N government had ensured rights of the people of that part of the province by providing resources worth billions generously.
During the meeting, progress on different development schemes pertaining to the prosperity and welfare of southern Punjab, especially the Bahawalpur division, came under discussion.
The chief minister said that a solar energy plant of 400 megawatt had been established at Quaid-e-Azam Solar Park in Bahawalpur and a Turkish company was also setting up 300 megawatt solar project with a tariff of six cents per unit. It would be the cheapest solar tariff in Pakistan’s history to provide low-priced electricity to the people.
He mentioned that a number of energy projects had also been completed in record time and the clouds of darkness will disappear by the end of the year. On the other side, he added, billions rupees of the nation had been saved by ensuring transparency, quality and speed in the execution of these projects.
Shehbaz Sharif said the Punjab government had spread a network of carpeted roads in villages through the Khadim-e-Punjab Rural Roads Programme and this was, by far, the largest programme of construction of rural roads. While, a sum of Rs 90 billion was being spent on ‘Pakkian Sarkan Saukhay Panday Programme’ and overall infrastructure had been improved, he maintained.
He said that the prosperity of southern Punjab’s people was very dear to him, asserting that the safe city project would also be started from Bahawalpur and every possible resource would be provided for the development of Bahawalpur. He said that wrong priorities of former rulers had created trouble for the nation, and negative political forces opposing the developmental projects could not obstruct the progress of the country.
“We will go to any extent for completion of projects aiming at development and prosperity of the country,” he vowed.
