Separate budget for South Punjab to address deprivation, says Qureshi

MULTAN: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Sunday said that the PTI-led government has come up with a separate budget for South Punjab for the first time in the country’s history.

The comments came during a press conference the foreign minister held after visiting the South Punjab Secretariat. He said that work on the city’s master plan is underway, while a separate budget of Rs186 billion has been set aside for South Punjab as per the government's promise, adding that the budget will solve the long-standing deprivation that the region had been facing.

The minister added that in case the allocated money is not spent on a certain scheme, it will be utilised for another scheme in South Punjab. "The government will ensure that every penny earmarked for South Punjab in the budget will be spent to develop the region," the foreign minister said. "It is the agenda of the PTI government to develop every city and town of South Punjab."

Qureshi said that the demand for turning South Punjab into a province is above all prejudices, adding thatthe establishment of a separate province will be a prelude to the fastest development in the region.

"For the purpose, the timely completion of all developmental projects is essential," he said. "Planning related to the allocation of funds for different projects is yet to be done."

The minister said that since the production of cotton has declined in Multan, the government has decided to make the Cotton Research Institute functional again under the programmes of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

He added that the Chairman of the CPEC Authority Asim Saleem Bajwa will visit Multan for the purpose next week. Answering a question related to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the minister said that FATF members will have to decide if it is a technical forum or a political one.

"If FATF is a technical forum, then Pakistan should be on its white list," he said. He added that India, along with some other powers, has tried to politicise the forum. "Pakistan has been told that if all the 27 points of FATF are fulfilled, it will be moved to the white list," he said. "The country has successfully implemented 26 points, so it will be removed from the grey list soon."