MIANWALI: Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Thursday announced development projects worth billions of rupees for Mianwali during a public gathering at the Government High School grounds.

The projects include the establishment of a medical college and the upgrade of the DHQ Hospital into a teaching hospital. The government also plans to set up an allied nursing college and institutions for other health professionals, along with separate agriculture and law colleges.

Without naming Imran Khan, the chief minister said although a man from Mianwali had ruled both Pakistan and Punjab, he “failed to deliver meaningful development for his own district”.

Maryam said the government had already established a state-of-the-art cath lab at Mianwali DHQ, where heart patients would receive free treatment, eliminating the need to travel to major cities.

She further announced the distribution of 300,000 acres of agricultural land among landless farmers, allotting five acres each on a 25-year lease. The initiative, titled “Apna Khet, Apni Zameen”, aims to ensure dignified livelihoods for small farmers.

Congratulating MPA Ali Haider Noor Khan on his recent victory in the PP-87 by-election after the seat fell vacant due to the de-seating of PTI’s Malik Ahmed Khan Bhachar, the chief minister highlighted her government’s two-year performance.

She listed the launch of the first-ever Green Bus Service for Mianwali, the Suthra Punjab initiative, distribution of Rs260 billion in loans to 800,000 farmers, ration cards for 1.5 million workers, construction of 30,000 kilometres of new roads, and several long-awaited drinking water schemes across Punjab.

She said Mianwali may lie on the outskirts of Punjab’s map but was “not far” from her priorities and this was her fourth visit to the district in two years.

Rejecting criticism that her government focuses only on Lahore, the chief minister said development was being ensured “in every nook and corner of Punjab”.

She claimed that while previous governments provided only 21,000 tractors over 25 years, her government had delivered the same number within two years, with 10,000 more in the pipeline.

She added that the previous regime distributed agricultural machinery worth Rs3 billion, whereas the current government had provided equipment valued at Rs60bn in just two years to uplift the farming community.

Sources said government officials and PML-N candidates from across the district extensively mobilised people to ensure the success of the public gathering.

Earlier, in his welcome address, MPA Ali Haider Noor Khan thanked the chief minister for promptly addressing local issues. He presented the district’s problems, many of which were accepted for resolution by the chief minister.

Published in Dawn, February 13th, 2026