Steps to rehabilitate lockdown-hit people under way: Buzdar

MULTAN: Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar has said the government is taking steps for rehabilitation of people, affected by the lockdown.

Chairing a meeting at the Multan International Airport before his departure for Rajanpur on Thursday, he reviewed the measures taken to curb the Covid-19 pandemic in the province. The chief minister ordered all departments and Multan City District administration to jointly ensure implementation of the standard operating procedures (SOPs) to overcome the pandemic. He ordered the officers concerned to improve facilities at the Multan quarantine centre.

Later, the chief minister flew to Rajanpur by a helicopter and inaugurated the wheat harvesting campaign at Matwa village, Rojhan tehsil, by cutting the crop with a harvester.

Talking to the media there, the CM said this year’s wheat procurement target was fixed at 4.5 million metric tonnes and the produce would be procured at the rate of Rs1,400 per maund from farmers. The restriction of ‘Girdawari’ had been done away with while the provincial ministers would also monitor the procurement campaign in their assigned districts, he added.

The chief minister said that 15 inter-provincial entry and exit points would be fully operational to monitor the wheat procurement drive. He said that the interests of peasants would be protected at all levels and every grain would be procured from growers. The CM said that Prime Minister’s Agriculture Emergency Programme had been launched in the province with the allocation of Rs300 billion.

An exclusive agriculture uplift project worth Rs12.5 billion had also been launched to increase the per acre wheat yield in the province, he added. The government had provided 400,000 sacks of certified seeds to farmers this year and 1.2m sacks would be given to farmers for the next crop, the CM said, adding that the crop of 250,000 farmers had been insured by increasing the scope of the crops insurance scheme. The CM said that Rs8.5 billion subsidy was also given to 5.2 million farmers to purchase fertilisers and thousands of watercourses were being bricked in the Punjab at a cost of Rs28 billion to improve the supply of water. The chief minister said that the Punjab government had introduced 80 new varieties of vegetables, fruits and other commodities besides starting a complaint management system for eradicating spurious pesticides and fertilisers.

Similarly, interest-free loans amounting to Rs15 billion had also been given to farmers under the e-credit scheme, he added. The CM was briefed that 10.9 million-metric-ton wheat was expected this year from an area spanning over 10.6 million acres. The wheat procurement target of more than 650,000 metric tons was fixed for DG Khan division.

The CM was also briefed about the situation of locusts attack in Rajanpur.

Later, the CM visited the wheat procurement centre at Matwa village and distributed gunny bags among farmers. Punjab Agriculture Minister Malik Nauman Langrial, Punjab Livestock Minister Sardar Husnain Bahadur Dareshak and others were also present.

Later, Punjab CM Usman Buzdar visited the DHQ Hospital Rajanpur to review facilities arranged for coronavirus patients. He ordered for ensuring better treatment of patients, adding that quality healthcare facilities would be ensured in Rajanpur district. The shortage of doctors and paramedics would be overcome soon and consultant doctors would also be appointed to the hospital.

He said that DHQ Hospital Rajanpur would be upgraded and Rural Health Centres (RHCs) of Fazalpur, Kot Mithan and Dajal would be upgraded as THQ hospitals. He announced that an eye ward will be set up in Rojhan Hospital and gynae wards would be established in Jampur and Rojhan hospitals. Buzdar said that health advisory was being strictly implemented for safety from coronavirus. He pointed out that Punjab had taken the lead by implementing Punjab Infectious Diseases Prevention & Control Ordinance, 2020 and permission had been granted to hire the services of 10,000 doctors and paramedics.

He said that a maximum number of tests of coronavirus patients had been conducted in Punjab and the facility would be increased to 10,000 tests daily in the next few days. The CM was told that five isolation wards had been set up for coronavirus patients and more than 93,000 people from different provinces had also been screened in Rajanpur Hospital.