05 October 2004	Tuesday	19 Shaban 1425

LAHORE, Oct 4: Punjab Governor Khalid Maqbool on Monday inaugurated the three-day anti-polio vaccination campaign at the Children's Hospital. The governor said the prime minister had also spelt out his manifesto and planning to focus on health issues in his address to the nation.

He said the prime minister was of the view that only clean drinking water, proper sanitation and hygienic conditions could help develop a healthy society. He said the Punjab government had also worked hard to improve healthcare services in the province by increasing funds for the health sector and availability of medicines in all hospitals as well as rural health centres and basic health units.

He, however, said the incidence of Hepatitis was increasing due to non-availability of clean potable water and other hygienic conditions. The governor said the University of Health Sciences had also entered into an agreement with the University of Texas to promote health sciences in Punjab.

Later, talking to reporters, he said that the Punjab government had informed Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz about the Sialkot mosque blast incident and assured that the attackers would be arrested soon.

He said the PM was briefed when he called upon Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi to inquire after him. Saying that the incident was highly condemnable, the governor added that the assailants neither belonged to Pakistan nor believed in any religion and sect.

He said the government was heading to arrest the culprits besides stepping up security measures. Mr Maqbool said the government would ensure peace and proper implementation of law and order.

Answering a question, he said all universities in the province had conducted a lengthy exercise of revising and updating their curricula. He said the universities were now required to take those revised courses to their respective statutory bodies for approval and implementation.

The governor said respective universities were also opening new disciplines to meet the modern world requirements and tap the job market at home and abroad. He said the Government College University, Lahore, and Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, would soon be opening the department of banking and finance.

He said the University of Engineering and Technology was opening its sub-campuses in Sialkot and Faisalabad, while Agriculture University, Faisalabad, was planning to open its sub-campus in Toba Tek Singh. Similarly, he said, other universities were also planning to open their sub-campuses in Jhelum, Sahiwal and other cities in the province.