LAHORE: Prime Minister Imran Khan has given a go-ahead to notify in the gazette the Rules of Business to empower administrative secretaries posted in the south Punjab secretariat.

The government had notified the rules for south Punjab on Dec 20 last year, but they could not be notified in the gazette and had left all administrative secretaries powerless.

The meeting chaired by the prime minister also agreed that a separate Annual Development Programme would be developed for the southern region for financial year 2021-22.It also agreed to allocate a job quota for candidates from south Punjab.

The prime minister directed to constitute divisional-level committees for south Punjab comprising ministers, MNAs, MPAs, commissioner and deputy commissioners to address complaints of people of the region. The complaints not addressed by the committees would eventually land in the chief minister’s secretariat for redressal.

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi as well as MNAs and MPAs from south Punjab attended the meeting.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2021