PM orders provision of health cards in tribal areas
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan ordered on Monday to provide health cards to 500,000 families in the former Federal Administered Tribal Areas by the end of January.
A meeting presided over by the prime minister reviewed progress on administrative affairs, health, education, law and order and development in tribal areas which have been merged into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) this year.
Finance Minister Asad Umar, KP Governor Shah Farman, Chief Minister Mehmood Khan, PM’s adviser Arbab Shahzad and KP’s Finance Minister Taimur Saleem Khan also attended the meeting.
Imran Khan told the meeting that the government wanted to bring Fata at par with other developed areas of the country.
He directed the chief minister, provincial ministers and relevant provincial secretaries to pay frequent visits to already merged tribal areas and different departments and inspect development works.
The prime minister also directed the provincial government to enforce local government system in tribal areas and fill vacant posts in education, police and health departments.
NAYA PAKISTAN HOUSING AUTHORITY: In a separate meeting, Prime Minister Imran Khan said the draft of the Naya Pakistan Housing Authority has been prepared and it will be presented before the federal cabinet soon.
Similarly, the Real Estate Regularity Authority will also be formed and its draft proposal will be present to the cabinet next week. Following formation of the authority, the regulatory department will be separated from development.
The meeting was informed that the PM’s Task Force on Housing will soon receive recommendations of the State Bank of Pakistan on interest rates on real estate.
The draft bill on urban regeneration will be given final shape in two weeks.
Representatives of the Federal Government Employees Housing Foundation told the prime minister that the foundation will construct houses for 100,000 government employees.
Forty-one firms have so far shown interest in construction of housing units under the Naya Pakistan Housing Programme. Twenty-five of them wanted to construct houses at one venue while 14 firms are keen to initiate the project in other places.
Meanwhile, a delegation of overseas Pakistani businessmen from Dubai, who had recently raised $918,510 for construction of Diamer-Bhasha Dam, called on the prime minister.
Published in Dawn, January 1st, 2019
