Amraiz Khan
Lahore
Chief Minister Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar congratulated Finance Minister Hashim Jawan Bakht and his team members for their role in budget making. He said, “It is very balanced and a public-friendly budget. Steps have been proposed for public relief despite difficult circumstances resulting due to coronavirus pandemic and in this backdrop”.
On Monday he chaired the 30th provincial cabinet meeting at his office to approve the budget proposals for the financial year 2020-21 with consensus. It also approved financial bill 2020 along with supplementary budget and revised estimates for 2019-20. The meeting also endorsed decisions made in 29th cabinet meeting along with the approval of decisions made in the 32nd, 33rd and 34th meetings of cabinet standing committee on financial development. Similarly, decisions made in the 23rd, 24th and 25th meetings of cabinet standing committee for legislative business were also approved.
Secretary Finance apprised the participants about salient features of provincial budget and annual development program. Ban on transferring southern Punjab’s development funds to some other project or city will remain intact as the cabinet approved ring fencing of three southern Punjab division’s development funds in the new financial year. The CM maintained that realistic targets have been fixed and priorities have been identified according to public needs. It is a realistic document for balanced development and not jugglery of worlds, he said.
Meanwhile Chairing provincial parliamentary party meeting at 90-SQA here on Monday, he said that three lakh and 56 thousand people have been tested in Punjab and the testing capability has reached to 12 thousand. Meanwhile, Rs 25 billion has been paid for dealing with coronavirus pandemic.
The chief minister said that he has visited more than 20 cities to review treatment facilities and steps are being taken on an emergent basis to increase the number of ventilators and high dependency units in hospitals. During this month, one thousand high dependency beds will be provided to Punjab government by NDMA and more beds will also be given next month, he added.
