PSCA scope being expanded to other cities: Buzdar

LAHORE: Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar on Wednesday visited the head office of Punjab Safe Cities Authority (PSCA) where he inaugurated a multipurpose facilities project for the officers and other staff members.

Talking on the occasion, the chief minister said that he was pleased that the best facilities were arranged for the staff. Usman Buzdar also presided over the 24th board meeting of PSCA.

He said that the scope of PSCA was being expanded to other cities as it was playing an important role in the eradication of crime. The enhanced scope of the project will benefit the people and Punjab province will be protected through the latest technology.

The Kasur Safe City Project will be operationalised soon. Construction of buildings for the PSCA has been completed in Multan, Rawalpindi, Sargodha, Bahawalpur, Faisalabad and Gujranwala, he added.

The PSCA project will be completed through the public-private partnership in Rawalpindi. The CM approved new recruitment to PSCA and also approved extension in the contract of the COO.

The meeting approved amendments to the service regulations of PSCA and provision of financial aid to the legal heirs in case of death of an employee. The married woman employees will be granted 90-day maternity leave. The employees’ contracts will be extended for another four years only over their satisfactory performance.

The PSCA employees will be eligible for gratuity after completion of one-year service. The meeting also approved pay raise for junior executive officers as well as the career plan of police communication officers. It was also decided that the online payment of e-challan would be possible.

The CM directed the officers that the steps for online payment should be given final shape as soon as possible so that the hassle of going to banks for the payment of e-challans could be avoided. He also visited the media monitoring room and video wall and inspected the monitoring of the traffic system through the latest CCTV cameras.

He said PSCA staff was working with commitment to curb the crimes. Punjab government has given approval to the career plan, service structure, he said, adding all problems would be solved on a priority basis in future as well.

The PSCA CEO said 925,000 violators of traffic rules had been fined through the e-challan system and a sum of Rs.100 million was collected from them.

Meanwhile Wapda Chairman Lt-Gen (r) Muzammil Hussain called on Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar at his office here on Wednesday and discussed with him the progress made on hydel power projects.

The chief minister said that work was being done on small hydel power projects in Punjab and steps had also been taken for the construction of small dams. Construction of new dams for conservation of water and energy generation is the need of the hour, he said, adding the hydel power projects would generate cheap electricity.

OPC: Usman Buzdar chaired a maiden board meeting of Overseas Pakistanis Commission (OPC), Punjab, at his office.

OPC Commissioner Usman Anwar briefed the meeting about the departmental performance. The chief minister accorded approval to draft a new act and directed that final recommendations should be presented after consulting the line departments for finalising the new act. The pending cases at the commission should be disposed of on priority, he said.

The meeting decided to constitute district-level OPC committees and the CM directed completion of the nomination of members as soon as possible. The constitution of the advisory council was also approved in the meeting.

The CM directed the officers concerned to constitute a committee for the nomination of advisory council members. He said the matter pertaining to giving allowance to the OPC staff should be sent to the Cabinet Committee for Finance and Development. “The expatriate Pakistanis are our precious asset. Their role in strengthening the national economy cannot be ignored

and the government will extend every possible facility to them,” the CM said. The Punjab government will ensure protection of their legal rights and properties, he added. The OPC Punjab will be made an active and vibrant department, he said.

The CM was briefed that 77 cases of expatriate Pakistanis had been solved during the tenure of the incumbent government and properties worth Rs 34 crore retrieved. No OPC board meeting was held during the five-year tenure of the previous government.