Provincial Minister for Law, Parliamentary Affairs and Social Welfare Raja Basharat has said that the Punjab government is pursuing plans to improve the living standards of the people of Dera Ghazi Khan and Rajanpur's Kacha and tribal areas.
He was presiding over a review meeting of the committee set up in this regard at the Civil Secretariat on Tuesday. Raja Basharat said Chief Minister Sardar Usman Bazdar wanted to improve security and basic social structure in the Kacha area. He said that the problems faced by Border Military Police (BMP) and other agencies would be addressed on priority basis. The force would be provided with equal service structure, resources and training of Punjab Police, he added.
The government will remove the deprivations of the Kacha area and build more schools, hospitals, roads and create employment opportunities, the minister said. Earlier in the briefing, it was informed that the tribal areas were currently being administered by political assistants, BMP and Baloch Levies.
Of 502 posts in BMP, 376 are vacant. The BMP and Baloch Levies have a severe shortage of resources such as vehicles, buildings, weapons, equipment, etc. Provincial Minister for Irrigation Mohsin Leghari said the BMP was in dire need of resources and training.
Deputy Speaker Punjab Assembly Dost Mohammad Mazari said the BMP offices and outposts were in a dilapidated condition and there was an urgent need for reforms in the tribal areas. Raja Basharat directed Dera Ghazi Khan Commissioner to prepare recommendations in the light of briefing and suggestions of stakeholders which would be submitted to the chief minister.
