Aziz urges coordinated rehabilitation efforts: Trouble-makers in Balochistan warned
By Our Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, March 15: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on Wednesday assured his government’s full support for rehabilitating people affected by last year’s earthquake in the NWFP.
During a meeting with NWFP Chief Minister Mohammad Akram Khan Durrani, who called on him at the Prime Minister’s House, Mr Aziz said the provincial government should ensure effective and efficient implementation of rehabilitation plans.
He said that the gigantic rehabilitation effort required seamless coordination between the Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority and the governments of the NWFP and Azad Kashmir.
The law and order situation and the pace of work on development projects in the province also came under discussion.
The NWFP chief minister briefed the prime minister about the law and order situation in his province and said that his government was taking necessary steps to maintain peace.
Chief Minister of Balochistan Jam Mohammad Yousuf also called on the prime minister.
During the meeting, the prime minister said the government would sternly deal with anti-development elements and trouble-makers in Balochistan, who were harming the national interest.
He said that the government was paying special attention to the development needs of Balochistan and had allocated billions of rupees to bring about a meaningful socio-economic transformation in the province.
He asked the Balochistan chief minister to ensure that law of the land was respected. He said that a conducive atmosphere was vital for the implementation of development programmes.
Later, in a meeting with the executive chairman of Hamilton Bradshaw, a major private equity company in the UK, Mr James Caan, the prime minister spoke about prospects of private and venture capital in Pakistan and said it had considerable potential because of its robust economy.
Mr Aziz highlighted the country’s economic growth, improving profitability and capital market reforms and said that the there was an increase in corporate earnings.
Mr James Cann said that the time was appropriate for Pakistan to attract investment from foreign private equity firms, hedge funds and other institutional investors.
APP adds: The prime minister chaired a meeting of the ERRA Council that decided the disbursement of next instalment for reconstruction of damaged houses would begin in the first week of April.
The government would launch a scheme for granting monthly Rs3,000 to vulnerable families in April, a press release said.
Deputy Chairman, ERRA Maj-Gen Nadeem Ahmed presented strategies for rural housing reconstruction, health, education strategy and livelihood and cash grants.
