Won’t sit idle till provision of potable water to all: Shahbaz

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has said he will never sit idle till the provision of potable water to every citizen of the province. Education, healthcare and development projects are the top priorities of the Punjab government.

Chairing a meeting here on Wednesday, he said the programme of provision of clean drinking water was important as lives of crores of people were linked with it. He said clean drinking water projects were being completed on a priority basis in every big and small city including Lahore.

He said he was also utilizing all capabilities and available resources for providing best health facilities to people. “I and my team members are working day and night for that purpose;” he said and added that high-quality medicines, latest medical equipment and provision of best facilities were ensured in all hospitals of Punjab. He said a foolproof system of disposing of hospital waste would be ensured and a composite hospital waste system was being introduced in all public hospitals.

Punjab Ministers Rana Sanaullah, Begum Zakiya Shahnawaz, Khawaja Salman Rafiq, Khawaja Imran Nazir, Sheikh Allauddin, Khawaja Hasaan, the chief secretary and other officials attended the meeting.

Meanwhile, Shahbaz visited the Chinese Consulate and met Chinese Consul General Long Dingbin. Matters of mutual interest and CPEC came under discussion. The CM congratulated the consul general on the start of new Chinese year. He also extended congratulations to Chinese President Xi Jingping and the leadership of the Communist Party of China as well as the Chinese people.

The consul general said Shahbaz set a record by completing different projects with unprecedented speed. New standards of development were set in Punjab due to his committed leadership. The Chinese leadership acknowledged his hard work. “CPEC projects are being carried out in a transparent manner and China is standing by you in the journey of development,” he added.

Shahbaz said Pak-China relations had turned into strong economic and bilateral relations. He said Pakistan’s economy was strengthened due to Chinese investment to the tune of billions of dollars. He said not only Pakistan but the whole region would benefit from the CPEC. “Our friends are happy over the CPEC, while the enemy is in pain. No conspiracy can encumber the CPEC and due to the completion of energy projects, Pakistan has got rid of load-shedding,” he said. Later, Turkey Pakistan Business Council Lahore Chairman Atilla D Yerlikaya called on Shahbaz to discuss matters of mutual interest including enhancement of bilateral cooperation in health sector. The CM said the history of brotherly relations with Turkey was spanned over hundreds of years and Turkish people were dear to Pakistanis like brothers. He said bright prospects of Turkish investment existed in agriculture, industry, textile and other sectors and there would be no hurdle for Turkish investors.

Yerlikaya said: “Shahbaz is revered to us and we acknowledge his leadership abilities and vision of public development. The development process under his leadership is praiseworthy.” Punjab Ministers Malik Nadeem Kamran, Khawaja Salman Rafiq, Khawaja Imran Nazir, Khawaja Hasaan, the PBIT CEO and others were present.

In another meeting with Punjab Ministers Malik Nadeem Kamran and Zaeem Qadri, the CM said public service was the agenda of the PML-N government and the future of PML-N opponents was bleak due to ongoing mega projects. Also on Wednesday, the CM took notice of the murder of a GCU professor near Kalma Chowk and sought a report from the CCPO.

Later, he visited the residence of MNA Rana Hayat at Lambay Jagir, Phoolnagar, to condole the death of Rana Nisar, father of Rana Hayat and Rana Ishaq, paternal uncle of Punjab Assembly Speaker Rana Iqbal and paternal grandfather of Rana Sikandar, chairman of District Council Kasur. He expressed sympathies to the bereaved family and offered Fateha for the departed soul.