LAHORE: Senior minister Aleem Khan has admitted that the PTI government’s “difficult and unpopular” decisions have burdened commoners during the past four months.

Chairing a maiden meeting [of a series of meetings] to review departments’ quarterly performance here on Wednesday, Mr Khan said the government took difficult, unpopular but realistic steps during the past four months and ‘burden’ of the policies affected commoners. Now, he said, the government’s prime responsibility was to take remedial measures accordingly.

Reviewing the quarterly performance of five departments – agriculture, food, irrigation, livestock and forests – the senior minister stressed that all government departments should come up with long- and short-term planning as well as proposals to increase performance in real terms during the current quarter of the year.

The minister said the people had high hopes with the present leadership and it was government’s prime duty to listen to the complaints and go for their genuine solution.

Stating that the departments should spend as per their available resources and deliver best results, the minister gave fresh targets to the five departments for completion till March 31.

In the livestock department, the minister asked the administrative secretary to do practical work for export zones and improvement for the animals. He advised the agriculture department to provide more facilities to farmers.

The meeting also discussed performance and targets of irrigation and forest departments. The minister lauded the performance of Punjab Food Authority and called for setting up nutrition clinics in each district.

Aleem directed the senior officers to keep in view the vision of the present government and take steps in the light of the directions of the premier and chief minister. He said policies of the past seven decades needed to be changed and there was much work to be done at a faster pace. “There is no doubt the [present] government has inherited the financial burden, yet we have to strive hard for the solution to challenges,” Mr Khan said.

Punjab ministers Sardar Mohsin Leghari, Noman Langrial, Samiullah Chaudhry and Sardar Hasnain Bahadar Dareshak as well as administrative secretaries of five departments attended the meeting and presented proposals for the next five months.

Published in Dawn, January 17th, 2019