KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Monday directed the general administration department to remove number plates from the government vehicles meant for auction and surrender the same to the excise department.

The chief minister also raised the issue of unauthorised use of government vehicles and directed the relevant ministers and officers to return such vehicles within 24 hours.

Mr Shah was presiding over a cabinet meeting at New Secretariat. He said he was paying special attention towards the development of the province. “You will be surprised to know that by this date the finance department has released Rs93.1 billion out of Rs225 billion provincial and district annual development programme against which Rs31 billion has been utilized. The figure of utilisation doesn’t seem good but it will turn satisfactory when the payment of bills is made,” he said.

Appreciating the lifting of ban on recruitment, the cabinet decided to allocate 15 per cent quota in jobs to women and five per cent to minorities. The cabinet expressed reservations over federal government’s reluctance to respect 18th Amendment. It observed that the centre was reluctant to hand over the functions and assets of its different ministries and divisions to the provincial government as provided under 18th Amendment.

The cabinet observed that an attempt was being made by the federal government to roll back the 18th Amendment. The meeting also expressed reservation over the reluctance of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to convene meetings of the council of common interest.

The cabinet authorized the chief minister to write a letter to the prime minister to convey their reservations against non-implementation of the 18th Amendment in letter and spirit and against not convening the CCI meting.

The meeting was attended by all ministers, advisers, special assistants, chief secretary and senior officers concerned.

Tourism, energy sectors

The chief minister also met a Hong Kong-based delegation of Chinese investors led by Yau Wai Ming, Chairman of Hao Tian Group Holding Ltd, at CM House and invited them to finance in tourism and energy projects.

Mr Shah told them that the government had created conducive atmosphere for investment in the province by developing infrastructure and improving law and order. He added that a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode of investment had been created to facilitate the private sector investment.

Referring to Keenjhar Lake development plan, he said the beautiful lake had potential to become a major tourist resort. In summer, water sports events, boating and such other activities could be organised there, while in winter its beauty enhanced further with colourful migratory birds which flocked there. It had great potential as people from Karachi and Hyderabad went there on weekends.

Similarly, he added, Gorakh Hill could also be developed to attract local and international tourists, as it was one of the best hill stations across the province.

Besides, he said, Sindh had a vast coastal belt where different resorts with different facilities could also be established.

The Chinese investors said that they would form an investment company to finance the projects on built, operate and transfer mode or a public-private partnership basis. They also showed interest in the energy sector particularly in renewable energy.

Committee formed

The chief minister formed a three-member committee comprising Additional Chief Secretary (Dev) Mohammad Waseem, Board of Investment Chairperson Naheed Memon and Energy Secretary Agha Wasif to hold meetings with the investors and explore avenues and projects in which they were interested.

The Chinese investors also told the chief minister that they were interested in building a Chinese-English medium school. The chief minister welcomed the offer and recalled that it was former president Asif Ali Zardari who had introduced Chinese language classes in schools in Sindh. This would be a good step to further strengthen ties between the people of Pakistan and China, he added.

Other members of the delegation included Fok Chi Tak, Gao Shufang and Law Man Tat, while the consul general of China Wang Yu accompanied them.

Published in Dawn, November 8th, 2016