MULTAN, Feb 2: The Punjab Mineral Development Depart-ment has set up a fund of Rs250 million for the welfare of its workers.

This was stated by provincial minister for mineral development and mining Mohammad Sabtain while speaking at a meeting of his department’s officers belonging to Multan and Dera Ghazi Khan here on Sunday.

He said schools, hospitals and residential colonies would be built with the workers welfare fund in different parts of the province. The government was taking steps for the safety of miners, and an amount of Rs200,000 would be given to the family of the miner who lost his life accidentally during work.

The minister hoped the Mineral Development Department could generate resources equal to the Revenue Department provided it be made effective and functional.

OPPOSED: The local chamber of small traders has opposed the government move to abolish self-assessment scheme to file income tax returns.

At a meeting held here on Sunday with CST’s Multan president Khalid Mahmood in the chair, it was observed that book-keeping was rather impossible for an ordinary trader. It was said that 90 per cent of the traders were provided loose receipts by the manufacturers, distributors and importers on the supply of goods. “How can we give a valid bill to our customers when we do not get it.”

Moreover, in the prevailing recessionary economic conditions, hiring services of accountants would not be possible for the majority of businessmen. “Even if the traders espouse sincerely to implement the new income tax policy, they cannot understand it owing to general education level among their ranks,” the meeting observed.

Therefore, the meeting demanded restoration of the self-assessment scheme in its ‘true sense’ otherwise the traders would boycott submission of the returns in future.

The participants urged Pakistan Traders Alliance central chairman Khwaja Mohammad Shafiq, also present at the meeting, to convene an all-Pakistan traders convention to deliberate upon the new income tax policy and evolve a common strategy to wage a struggle against it.