SWABI, Feb 15: The NWFP government is considering sending 100 outstanding students of different institutions to foreign countries for higher education on government expenditure.

This was stated by the provincial food minister Fazal Rabbani on Saturday at a tree plantation ceremony arranged by Pakistan Tobacco Company.

The NWFP government has given top priority to the education sector, he said, adding that all-out efforts would be made to impart modern education to the youngsters.

He said the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal government wanted to restore the people’s shattered confidence in the leadership. The promises made with the people during the October elections would be kept at all cost, he added.

The NWFP government has already declared that free education would be provided up to Matric while Urdu has been adopted as a medium of instruction. English is also to be retained as an option with the national language, the minister said.

The steps taken against the cinema owners were also in keeping with the demands of the public, because they had indulged in spreading obscenity, he said.

Four of them had already expressed readiness to close their business. With this closure, about 200,000 people would be shielded from falling prey to the immoral culture.

He appreciated the PTC’s plantation drive but urged its officials to work for the solution of tobacco growers’ problems by picking the entire tobacco produce this season.

The company’s leaf manager Ahmad Nawaz said his company had allocated Rs8 million for tree plantation in the current campaign. Four lakh saplings would be distributed free of cost among the people.

From 1981 to 2002, the PTC had given 25 million saplings free of charge to the people. This season, 3.5 lakh would be provided to the people of NWFP’s tobacco growing areas, he said.

Some of the saplings have been grown by the PTC in its own nurseries, while the remaining will be purchased, he said. Each sapling would cost 61 paisa.