Livestock uplift can create jobs, says CM

LAHORE

Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has said livestock and dairy development has vast potential and development of this sector on solid basis can result in the socio-economic development and creation of job opportunities. He said immediate measures were needed for the promotion of livestock and dairy development so that full benefit could be taken from the potential in this sector and socio-economic development of rural population could also be ensured.

He was addressing a meeting held through video link at the Civil Secretariat on Wednesday which considered various measures and proposals for the promotion of livestock and dairy development sector on solid foundations. 

Addressing the meeting, the chief minister said majority of rural population of Punjab was linked with the livestock and dairy development sector and there was a need to impart modern training to the rural population so that production could be increased. He said to increase the production of livestock, the programme for skill development of rural population should effectively be implemented and no effort should be spared for achieving the desired results. He said livestock sector had a key importance in strengthening of economy and there was a need to set the targets and move forward for the development of livestock sector.  He said solid measures had been taken for the promotion of livestock in the province, however more result-oriented steps should be taken for fully benefiting from the vast potential in this sector. He said an active role would have to be played for increasing the share of livestock and dairy development sector, especially in the international market, so that pace of socio-economic development could be accelerated and exports be increased. The chief minister directed that the Livestock Department should continue free vaccination programme for saving the cattle from diseases as the Punjab government was providing all-out resources for this purpose. 

Parliamentarians:  Shahbaz Sharif has said Pakistan, under the leadership of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, has started its journey towards peace, progress and prosperity during the last two and a half years and its future will be brighter. He said programme for the progress of the country and prosperity of the masses was being implemented as a mission and welfare projects worth billions of rupees had been started for the welfare and betterment of the common man. He said the elements criticising public welfare projects unjustifiably were the enemies of prosperity of the masses.

He expressed these views while talking to the members of national and provincial assemblies of various districts who met him on Wednesday.  Shahbaz said work was in progress on power projects and a number of projects would be producing electricity by 2017. He said due to solid policies of the government, economic activities had accelerated.