GUJRAT: The Pakistan Muslim League Quaid (PML-Q) has formally floated the idea of upgrading Gujrat district to a new division in Punjab for better service delivery and governance.

According to sources, the proposal was presented before Chief Minister Usman Buzdar by the PML-Q MNA Moonis Elahi at a recent meeting, where Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Pervez Elahi was also present. Currently, Punjab has nine divisions, and if the Q proposal gets approved, Gujrat will be the 10th in the province.

Official sources said Moonis Elahi floated the proposal in response to Mr Buzdar sharing the idea of establishing at least three to four new districts in Punjab.

As per the proposal, Wazirabad tehsil should be upgraded to district by declaring Gakhar Mandi and Ali Pur Chattha, or any other major urban area, as new tehsils as components of the proposed division, the sources said.

They said the districts of Mandi Bahauddin, Hafizabad and Wazirabad could become the part of the proposed division for better service delivery, governance and uplift of the constituent districts.

According to a local PML-Q leader, Mr Buzdar appreciated the suggestion, and promised to seriously consider it.

He said that local administration had already worked out a plan for the establishment of new divisional headquarters near Kunjah, on Gujrat-Sargodha road that would be a central place for the people of Wazirabad, Mandi Bahauddin and Hafizabad districts.

The local authorities have also selected the sites for the establishment of Phase-II of the industrial estate area and a child and mother care hospital, where projects of 30-kilometer long Samman-Dinga road and six-kilometer-long industrial area approach road are also being executed for the infrastructural uplift of the area.

Both road infrastructure projects have been planned as dual carriage ways, keeping in view the future expansion of the city and its adjoining areas.

A senior official endorsed the idea of a new division, saying it would be a relief for the Gujranwala division’s administrative machinery that was overburdened with the task of monitoring at least six districts.

Published in Dawn, April 15th, 2021