KARACHI, Nov 20: Sindh Chief Minister Arbab Ghulam Rahim has said that rights of people in the entire province would be safeguarded at all costs.

Talking to newsmen at Wazirabad village near Shikarpur on Saturday, the chief minister said that a decision regarding construction of Kalabagh Dam and Thal Canal would be taken only after consultation with the people of Sindh. "Any step in this regard will be taken in the interest of Sindh people alone," he declared.

Dr Arbab attended the marriage ceremony of federal minister Ghaus Bux Khan Mahar's daughter in the village.

The chief minister said that local government system was good because it was helpful in solving problems at grassroots level.

He said it had been proposed that local bodies election be held on non-party basis at UC level and on party basis at district and taluka levels.

The government under the leadership of President Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz is working for amelioration of the lot of masses and to boost the country's economy.

In reply to a question, Dr Arbab said that settling disputes amicably would be in the interest of people. This would also mean that justice was provided at the doorsteps of aggrieved, he added.

About new openings for educated youth in government departments, the chief minister said that a recruitment policy would be finalized soon.

Maintaining that bureaucracy was part of the government, he said that gradually, it would work and ensure the implementation of government policies in public interest. Honest and hard-working officers, he added, would be rewarded and unwilling workers punished accordingly.

The ceremony was attended, among others, by former premier Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, Sardar Yar Mohammad Khan Jamali, Minister for State for Industries Ali Nawaz Khan alias Raja Khan Mahar. -APP