The National Assembly was informed on Friday that 230 High Speed Coaches of international standard will soon be inducted into the fleet of Pakistan Railways to provide better travelling services to the passengers.
Parliamentary Secretary for Railways Kiran Imran Dar told the house during question hour that procurement of 820 high capacity wagons is also at an advanced stage.
She said Pakistan Railways is trying its utmost to improve the punctuality of trains. She said a policy for transfer of technology is being pursued with the collaboration of China for indigenization of Railway Rolling Stock in Pakistan Railways facilities.
Parliamentary Secretary for Industries and Production Shahida Rehmani informed the house that FIA has started an investigation into the theft of three metric ton of brass and copper in Pakistan Steel Mills.
Parliamentary Secretary for National Health Services Shazia Sobia Aslam Soomro said that public complaints regarding shortage of medicines are being addressed. She said medical camps have been established in the flood affected areas to provide timely treatment to the flood victims.
Parliamentary Secretary for National Food Security Ahmad Raza Maneka told the house that import of high yielding dairy and beef animals has been allowed to maintain the demand and supply of both milk and meat in the wake of devastating floods. He said a flood relief mission has been launched in the flood affected areas of Balochistan and Sindh to improve health and nutrition of animals.
Earlier, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif assured the government will fulfill its responsibility vis-à-vis provision of assistance and compensation to the flood-affected people.
Responding to the points of Ghous Bux Khan Mahar of GDA in the National Assembly he said it is joint responsibility of both the federal and provincial governments to provide relief to the flood affected people without any discrimination.
He said despite limited resources, we have provided cash assistance to the flood affected people. In addition, Kissan package has also been given to the farmers of affected areas.
Khawaja Asif said former prime minister Nawaz Sharif will return to Pakistan before the end of 2022.
The defence minister said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf protests had violated people’s rights, adding that everyone had the right to protest but the limits of the Constitution and law should not be crossed.
He said that no development work was done during the past four years under the PTI government, and the incumbent government had explained these circumstances to the people.
Asif also said that the government withdrew money from other sectors and gave it to the flood victims who were undergoing great difficulties due to cold winter nights.
The minister maintained that the federal and provincial governments should provide assistance to disaster victims without discrimination and that the government was not acting on political priorities.
The House has now been adjourned to meet again on the 1st of next month at 5 pm.
