Revamping hospitals priority: CM

LAHORE/ FAISALABAD: Caretaker Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi has said that instead of constructing new hospital buildings, it is his priority to improve the existing buildings.

He was reviewing the progress of ongoing construction work for the upgradation of the Surgical, Emergency, OPD, and New Block of Allied Hospital, Faisalabad, Tuesday. 

He directed to complete all the upgrade work by January 31 and said that immediate steps should also be taken to repair the dilapidated roofs of various wards.

He said that till now the Punjab government is paying money for the health insurance of every citizen of Punjab. He said that the lack of insulin for diabetic patients has been overcome. Answering the question regarding the issue of driving licences, he said that we have to get out of the mindset that we have to drive a car but not get a licence.

He said that people buy a vehicle worth Rs7 million but do not get a licence worth Rs1,000. He added that the government is not making any profit from the licence fee but only the licence card fee.

Mohsin Naqvi said that only 10 percent of people in Lahore have licences, but after the strictness of the government, 200 licences are being issued every minute. He said that an online system has been introduced to get a learner's licence and now citizens can visit any police station and get a licence.

He also reviewed the progress of construction work on Abdullahpur Jhumra Road Flyover and directed to complete the project by January 31, 2024.

Slaughter of useful animals banned in Punjab

Mohsin Naqvi has directed the livestock department to impose a ban on slaughtering beneficial female animals across all districts.

The meeting, chaired by the CM, decided to impose an emergency to increase livestock production and decided to constitute a committee comprising the livestock minister, ACS, secretary livestock, finance secretary, president All Pakistan Meat Exporters Association, and commissioners of DG Khan and Bahawalpur divisions. This committee will devise a plan for increasing livestock production, exports and fixing/non-fixing rates. Animals' disease-free compartments will be established, he said and sought a plan, within four days to increase livestock production and exports.

Naqvi takes action on licence app glitches

The chief minister visited service centre in Liberty and the service centre linked to Mayo Hospital Emergency Tuesday. During the visit, a multitude of grievances surfaced, primarily concerning the malfunctioning of the learner's licence mobile app and the prolonged waiting times. Expressing concern, the chief minister sought an immediate resolution to the app download issues. He made a phone call to the IGP and PITB chairman instructing them to release a video outlining the app's downloading procedure. The CM acknowledged that the number of licences issued in recent days surpassed those issued in an entire year. He encouraged citizens to comply with the process.

PIC OPD upgrade to start next week

The chief minister visited the Punjab Institute of Cardiology here, assessed the ongoing construction activities and reviewed the quality of ongoing work in the emergency block. He directed the authorities to complete the emergency block upgrade project by the end of December and instructed the upgrade of the OPD. The CM stated that the PIC OPD upgrade project would commence next week.

After the visit, Mohsin Naqvi, in a media statement, mentioned that the PIC's design, developed through consultation, was scheduled for completion by December 30. Addressing the shortage of beds, he announced the addition of 108 more beds post-upgrade. To alleviate patient waiting times for tests, satellite clinics have been initiated in Kot Khawaja Saeed and Shahdara, with consideration for a clinic at Mian Munshi Hospital.