SKARDU: Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi Wednesday said completion of terms by the democratic governments was important to effectively address problems facing the people.
Addressing a gathering after inaugurating the Gilgit-Baltistan University, the prime minister said that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government was committed to serving the masses and had several development projects to its credit that proved that “it did not believe in making hollow promises”. The premier said the PML-N government was the only government which completed every single project it launched in the interest of common man.
He said false pledges made by others to woo voters did not make place in the hearts of people, and added that the PML-N had always given priority to prosperity of people by bringing improvement to their areas.
Abbasi said his government was committed to bringing about a revolutionary change in the lives of people of Gilgit-Baltistan.
He mentioned that he was in particular advised by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif to complete all the earlier launched development projects in GB.
He said unlike the previous governments, the PML-N government had increased funds for Gilgit-Baltistan and mentioned the projects of roads networks, health and education sector aimed at providing best possible services to people at their door steps.
Abbasi said the educated youth of GB would play a leading role in taking the region forward. He said that he was particularly pleased to inaugurate the Gilgit-Baltistan University and visiting the Skardu Cadet College.
He said the issues of taxation for Gilgit-Baltistan would be resolved.
He said the lingering issue of timber had been resolved and hoped that it would be the last amnesty scheme. He urged the people to plant more trees and said Pakistan was facing serious climate issues and needed more tree plantation.
The prime minister, who earlier attended the budget meeting of the Gilgit Baltistan said his government was committed to uplifting of GB.
He said that work on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was going on at a fast pace and said it would usher in an era of progress and development that would transform the entire region.
GB Chief Minister Hafiz Hafeezur Rehman said the region had witnessed a great change during the past four years, for which the credit goes to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.
He said with completion of the Gilgit-Chitral Road, the region would get multiple connections and the dream of linking Gwadar to Gilgit would become a reality.
Higher Education Commission (HEC) Executive Director Dr Arshad Ali briefed the prime minister about the establishment of the Gilgit Baltistan University for which 1,500 kanal had already been donated by the GB government. Set up at a cost of Rs 1769.845 million, the university would cater to needs of around 2,000 students.
The university would have separate male and female hostels for 200 students each, laboratories and academic blocks.
He said that the government had allocated Rs 107 billion for the higher education across the country. He said the government had spent Rs 1,773.22 million from 2002-2018 in Gilgit Baltistan for eight projects and the allocation during the PML-N government were the highest.
He said two out of 10 districts in Gilgit-Baltistan would host universities, while sub-campuses would be set up in Ghizer, Chillas and Hunza.
Earlier, the prime minister also inaugurated the Gilgit-Baltistan University by unveiling the plaque. The university was earlier a campus of Karakorum University, which had been converted into Gilgit-Baltistan University. The event was attended by the GB Governor Mir Ghazanfar, Chief Minister Hafiz Hafizur Rehman, council members, Minister for Kashmir Affairs Barjees Tahir and Frontier Works Organization (FWO) Director General Major Gen Muhammad Afzal.
It may be mentioned that the Gilgit-Baltistan Council has approved a budget with a total outlay of about Rs 2.4 billion for financial year 2017-18.
Separately, the federal cabinet in its meeting on Wednesday, with Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in the chair, decided to table the Delimitation [of constituencies] Bill before the National Assembly for debate and consideration.
Earlier, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics gave a presentation to the cabinet on census, 2017. The meeting ratified recommendations of the Cabinet Committee for Disposal of Legislative Cases in its meeting held on October 16, 2017. The cabinet approved establishment of a drug court in Quetta and appointment of Justice Aftab Ahmed Gorar as judge special appellate court under Section 46(1) of the Prevention of Smuggling Act, 1977 in Sindh.
Appointment of Secretary Ministry of Information Technology & Telecommunication as chairman of the Management Board of National Telecommunication Corporation was also approved by the cabinet.
Published in Daily Times, October 26th 2017.
