Rs32,000 ‘minimum wage’ approved by Punjab cabinet

LAHORE: The 25th meeting of the provincial cabinet which held at the south Punjab secretariat on Monday with caretaker Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi in the chair, accorded approval to increase the minimum salary of workers to Rs32000. The CM directed to ensure the implementation of the decision to provide relief to them. The cabinet also gave a big relief to the disabled, elderly and students by allowing them to travel for free on the metro bus service and orange line metro train. It approved the committee’s recommendations regarding admission policy for session 2023-24 in government medical & dental colleges. It approved the formation of a cabinet committee to deal with smog and the CM ordered effective measures to deal with it. The cabinet approved the launch of an endowment fund worth one billion of rupees for the welfare of journalists and their families. The CM directed the secretaries to conduct field visits on Wednesday. The cabinet was briefed about the mega development projects of south Punjab, including the annual development programme and road repair and maintenance schemes, and Lahore, Sahiwal, Bahawalnagar motorway & Multan ring road projects. The CM directed to complete the projects in south Punjab soon. It was decided to entrust the responsibility of making the dispensaries functional and operational in the premises of the high courts of Lahore, Rawalpindi, Bahawalpur and Multan to the Punjab Health Facilities Management Company (PHFMC). It was decided to expand the scope of Punjab’s education landscape under the school adoption programme. The cabinet also extended the contracts of the employees of the Violence Against Women Centre Multan and appointed a chairman and member for the LDA Commission. It was approved to transfer the management of Haji Abdul Qayyum Teaching Hospital Sahiwal from the specialized healthcare & medical education department to the primary & secondary health department. The provincial policy for safeguarding the nationwide network of oil pipelines system, names of personalities for the Quaid-e-Azam Police Medal and President Police Medal and the establishment of the Punjab Mental Health Authority under the Punjab Mental Health (Amendment) Act 2014 were approved as well. Provincial ministers, advisors, chief secretary, IG police and others attended the meeting. Moreover, the CM visited Nawaz Sharif Agricultural University Multan and held a consultation session with professors, researchers and farmers. It was agreed to promote agricultural research sustainably. The CM announced a ministerial committee for devising comprehensive recommendations for the promotion of agri-research. The committee, comprising provincial ministers SM Tanvir, Bilal Afzal, Javed Akram and Ibrahim Murad, will present a comprehensive plan in consultation with all stakeholders. The participants floated different suggestions to increase productivity and access to modern seed varieties and appreciated the efforts of the CM for a good cotton crop. The CM also visited Nishtar Hospital-II in Multan and inspected various parts of the hospital including outdoor, under-construction emergency, waiting area, admin block and radiology department. He also inspected the pharmacy, operation theatres, CT scan, basement, inn and cafe. Secretary C&W and PD Nishtar-II gave a briefing about the project. While directing the completion of the project without delay, the CM noted that the Nishtar-II was the dire need of the people of the Multan district and adjoining areas and it would also lessen the load of the Nishtar Hospital. Provincial Ministers, chief secretary, IGP, secretaries and others were also present. Later, the CM visited the Multan Institute of Kidney Diseases where he inquired the patients and their attendants about the medical facilities provided to them. He also inspected the newly constructed building of DHQ Hospital Multan and directed to functionalize it soon. Copyright Business Recorder, 2023