BAHAWALPUR, Nov 25: Local political and social circles have expressed their anguish on ignoring Bahawalpur district while expanding the Punjab cabinet.

They said the district was once again ignored as no politician from Bahawalpur was included in the federal cabinet. They claimed that such actions added to the sense of deprivation of the people of the area. On the other hand, districts of Rahim Yar Khan and Bahawalnagar of the defunct Bahawalpur division had been given due representation in both federal and provincial cabinets.

They said due to non-representation of Bahawalpur district in the cabinets, people’s genuine problems would remain unresolved.

Of the 10 MPAs elected from the district, Makhdoom Iftikhar Ahmad Gilani of Uch Sharif, Sahibzada Muzamil Abbasi of Ahmadpur East, Sitara Fayyaz of Bahawalpur belonged to the ruling PML-Q, Ahmad Nawaz and Latif Aaqil of Khairpur Tamewali tehsil to the National Alliance, an ally of the ruling party, three to the PML-N and two to the PPP (parliamentarians).

FUNDS DEMANDED: Councillors elected against reserved seats for women, labour and minority demanded at a tehsil council meeting on Tuesday funds for the development projects proposed by them.

They protested that they were being ignored while allocating development funds.

Ironically, despite their protest neither convener nor tehsil Nazim assured them of allocation of funds.

The meeting, however, approved Rs100 increase in the monthly allowance of donkey cart sweepers on the demand of TMA Labour Union.

Opinion

Editorial

Sustainable path?
13 Jun, 2026

Sustainable path?

THE FY27 budget is the first clear signal that the government is ready to transition from stabilisation to growth ...
Prioritising education
13 Jun, 2026

Prioritising education

THOUGH the improvement in the country’s literacy rate may be slight, as highlighted by the Economic Survey, it ...
Poverty’s rise
13 Jun, 2026

Poverty’s rise

AS attention turns to the government’s plans for the coming fiscal year, one set of figures deserves particular...
A difficult story
Updated 12 Jun, 2026

A difficult story

Unless productivity becomes the dominant target of economic policy, Pakistan will continue to oscillate between crises and fragile recovery.
Rough waters
12 Jun, 2026

Rough waters

AMONGST the key potential triggers for fresh conflict in South Asia is water. The Indian state is behaving in an...
Politicised football
12 Jun, 2026

Politicised football

ALMOST three-and-half years since Lionel Messi led Argentina to FIFA World Cup glory, the latest edition of...