LAHORE, Jan 20: The Punjab Cabinet on Monday recommended only one-dish during all marriage-related functions for maximum 300 guests.

Formal law in this regard will be implemented after approval in the next Punjab Assembly session scheduled for Jan 29.

This was stated by Punjab Agriculture Minister Arshad Khan Lodhi and Chief Minister’s special assistant Raja Basharat on Monday. They were briefing newsmen after the cabinet meeting at the Punjab Civil Secretariat.

They said the cabinet discussed the Prohibition of Wasteful Expenditure on Marriages Ordinance 2003, the Agriculture Income Tax and the Punjab Juvenile Smoking Ordinance.

They said Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi had also asked the cabinet that the promulgation of ordinances should be stopped and all laws should be approved through the Punjab Assembly.

About the recommendations on the Prohibition of Wasteful Expenditure on Marriages Ordinance 2003, Raja Basharat said the cabinet had also gave definition of one-dish and suggested that the hosts should either offer bread and curry or rice and curry at all marriage-related functions.

He said the cabinet had recommended that the hosts should offer one-dish only to maximum 300 guests. No sweet dish would be allowed.

“If the guests will exceed the total number of 300, the host will be required to serve only soft drinks or soup and the serving of one-dish will amount to violation of the law,” he said.

Answering a question, he said the violators would be fined from Rs100,000 to Rs300,000. The district coordination officers (DCOs) will have the powers to implement the proposed law.

He said the cabinet had also recommended that lighting would be allowed only in the houses where marriage ceremonies would take place. The cabinet has recommended to ban lightings in streets and roads leading to such houses.

He said the families of the grooms and brides would be required to inform the District Nazim about the marriage functions.

Mr Basharat said the chief minister had also directed to prepare a draft legislation to ban the public exhibition of dowry.

He said the cabinet had also recommended to ban marriage functions in public parks.

Answering a question, he said that all food festivals would also be banned in public parks.

Mr Basharat said the Supreme Court had given a ruling that the provinces should independently legislate the matter to stop wasteful expenditure on marriages.

FARM INCOME TAX: Arshad Khan Lodhi said the chief minister had constituted a four-member committee to review the agriculture income tax.

Finance, irrigation and revenue ministers constitute the committee headed by Mr Lodhi. It would be required to give its recommendations before Jan 28 as it was supposed to be discussed in the Punjab Assembly session on Jan 29.

Mr Lodhi said the chief minister had also given some guidelines to the committee to provided maximum benefit to the farmers, who are the backbone of economy in the country.

He said the chief minister had suggested that the exemption ceiling on the agriculture land should be increased from 5.5 acres to about 12.5 acres.

He said the committee would also calculate the financial impact of the exemption to be given on the enhanced ceiling.

The committee would also give its recommendations to shift tax collected on the basis of agriculture income to the cultivable land.

“The committee will offer a better package to the farmers,” Mr Lodhi assured.

JUVENILE SMOKING ORD: Mr Lodhi said the cabinet had recommended that the cigarette retailers should not sell cigarettes to under 18 years of age children.