LAHORE, May 3: Punjab Governor Khalid Maqbool constituted on Friday a local government commission under the provincial local government minister to further enhance relations between the district governments and the province.

He announced the commission while chairing a meeting. Provincial ministers Tariq Hameed and Hamid Saeed Akhtar, Chief Secretary Imtiaz Masrur and other senior officers of the provincial government attended the meeting.

The meeting reviewed the transitional phase of the devolution plan and evaluated the performance of the city district police system.

It examined the pros and cons of the proposed conciliation committees at village and mohallah level and discussed the issue of setting up of the Punjab Finance Commission.

The governor directed the authorities concerned to prepare working papers regarding the establishment of public accounts committees at district level and take up the matter of assigning huge funds to the proposed citizen community boards in the province.

He asked the provincial public health engineering secretary to ensure speedy sanction to the water supply schemes identified by any tehsil municipal administration.

The governor announced transfer of power to the tehsil officers (infrastructure and services) for technical sanction of the development schemes having an estimated cost up to Rs 5 million. He said transparent tendering will have to be floated for development work involving estimated cost up to Rs 100,000.

Police: The governor earlier announced the establishment of citizens-police liaison committees at all district headquarters in the province in consultation with the elected members of the district governments and the chambers of commerce and industry concerned.

The governor asked police authorities to utilize funds for the department to reform police. He warned that police excesses would not be tolerated and those found torturing innocent people would not be spared.

He said an electronic crime control unit was being established with the technical assistance of the City Bank to arrest the white collar crime.