CM orders effective system of price control

LAHORE:Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi has ordered indiscriminate action against those responsible for artificial price-hike in the province.

While giving instructions to the cabinet standing committee on price control from London, the chief minister noted that inflation is the issue of the common man and added that ease should be created for the impecunious strata through an effective system of price control. The people couldn’t be left at the mercy of black marketers, he stressed and asked the political, as well as administrative teams, to play an active role in saving the people from artificial inflation. The chief minister stressed that the government has a full understanding of the difficulties of the common man. The parliamentarians should monitor the prices of essential commodities in their areas, he said and made it clear that the performance of deputy commissioners and assistant commissioners would be gauged through effective price-control measures. A report on the activities of each district will be prepared and those who would do well would be commended, the CM added and reiterated that there was no room for any negligence in this regard. Those who are negligent must be held accountable, he warned and directed holding price-control committee meetings in DC offices daily. Alongside this, the approved price lists should be displayed at the shops and the prices should be checked as per SOPs, he concluded.

SEEKS REPORT: The chief minister has expressed deep grief over the loss of lives due to the Montgomery Bazaar plaza fire and sought a report from commissioner Faisalabad. He ordered an investigation and extended sympathies to bereaved heirs.

NATIONAL DISASTER AWARENESS DAY: The chief minister has said that the earthquake of October 8, 2005, was the worst calamity whose devastation is still imprinted on our minds.

In his message issued on Friday, the CM said that the nation converged for the rehabilitation of the sufferers and it provided full support to them. It set an example of selflessness and sacrifice while helping people in need, he said and noted that PDMA and Rescue 1122 had been equipped with modern requirements to deal with eventualities. Rescue 1122 was founded during my previous tenure and today, this organisation has emerged as the best South Asian role model, said Pervaiz Elahi. Its services have also been appreciated at the global level and after assuming the post of the chief minister again, Rescue 1122 has been expanded to the tehsil level while motorcycle rescue service has been extended to all the districts of the province, he further said.

The CM maintained that an effective response mechanism is essential in case of natural calamity while trained human resource plays an effective role in disaster management. This day reminds us to be alert to save lives during natural calamities and it is the need of the hour to use modern technology to reduce the risk of losses in natural calamities, he concluded.