KP govt decides to revive Information Department

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government on the directives of the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan has decided to revive the provincial Information Department.
The revival of the department will also lead to the reinstatement of 138 officials adjusted in various departments of the province on July 4, 2014.Provincial Information Minister and spokesman of the provincial government, Mushtaq Ahmed Ghani told The News on Wednesday that the provincial government has decided in principle to revive the Information Department and strengthen it to cope with the emerging needs of the government vis-à-vis its relations with the media.
He said that director Pakhtunkhwa Radio, Muhammad Shuaib, has been posted as director of the revived Information Department,He said the chief secretary has also been directed to retrieve and return the assets of the Information Department.
He added that at the moment the Information Department had no office building and the vehicles of the department have also been included in the Secretariat pool. He said the vehicles would be returned to the Information Department.
The minister said the capacity of the department would also be enhanced through proper training and a mechanism of two-way communication would be initiated at the directorate of the Information.
He said the government had also decided to re-open all the nine regional offices of the Information Department that were closed down. “These regional offices will have to play a significant role,” he stressed.
Mushtaq Ghani said the complete revival of the department would take five to six days while summary for the posting of the new director Information was approved on Wednesday and notification in this regard would be issued today (Thursday).
The PTI government in July 2014 carried out the rationalisation of Information Department by adjusting around 138 officials into other departments.
However, the two-member Peshawar High Court bench comprising Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan and Justice Musarrat Hilali on July 23, 2014 suspended the notification of July 4 while hearing the petition of one of the adjusted officials.
It was observed that under the rationalization the majority of the junior officers were adjusted against the senior positions and in higher grades while some senior officers got surprisingly adjusted on junior and lower grade posts.
It led to an uncertain situation as various departments refused to accept the postings of the adjusted officers on the grounds that they had no technical background for the posts assigned to them.
The situation was brought into the notice of Imran Khan last week at a meeting attended, among others, by the former director information and secretary information. “Imran Khan directed the provincial government on the occasion to restore the Information Department,” Mushtaq Ghani said.Imran Khan also directed the provincial government to reinstate all the employees of the information department and take other necessary measures to revive the department.