KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah Tuesday presided over a seven-hour long Cabinet meeting and discussed and decided over 23 agenda items, including taking the census issue to the parliament, procurement of 250 diesel hybrid electric buses for intra-district operation, devolution of Sindh Solid Management to the divisional level, withdrawal of the condition of producing Form VII to sell wheat to the food department and filing an appeal against Sindh High Court decision under which regularization of law officers and various others of grade BS-16 and 17 have been declared illegal.
The meeting that started at 10 am and concluded at five pm was attended by provincial ministers, advisors, chief secretary Mumtaz Shah and other concerned secretaries.
Census: The chief minister told the Cabinet that he had attended the CCI meeting through video link on Monday in which Census-2017 was approved despite his dissenting vote. He said that he had told the prime minister that all the four provinces have serious reservations against the census result, therefore it should be conducted anew.
“The CCI since its inception has been taking consensus decisions, but this was the first decision which has been taken with a vote dissent,” he told the Cabinet and said that in such a situation he has to take up the matter in the parliament.
Provincial Cabinet approved to take up the matter of the census in the parliament.
250 buses: Minister Transport & Mass Transit Awais Qadir Shah briefing the Cabinet said that his department has a plan to procure 250 Diesel Hybrid Electric Buses under Sindh Intra-District People Bus Service project.
He told the Cabinet that these buses would operate in Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Larkana, Mirpurkhas and Shaheed Benazirabad. The Mass Transit department has hired a professional consultant and the project would cost Rs8 billion.
The Cabinet approved the proposal and gave go ahead to the Transport department to procure the buses. The chief minister said that he would provide necessary funds to the department for the purpose and termed it a good news for the people of six districts.
SSWMB: Minister for Local Government Nasir Shah presented a draft Sindh Solid Waste Management Act-2021 which envisaged creation of Solid Waste Management Board at each Divisional headquarter of the province. Each board would be headed by a concerned commissioner of the division with the mayor of Metropolitan corporation and metropolitan as members of the board.
The board would have a Managing director to fulfil the function of the board.
The Cabinet approved the proposal and referred the matter to the assembly.
Wheat procurement: Minister Food Hari Ram and his department Secretary Haleem Shaikh briefing the Cabinet said that they have started procurement of wheat from April 1, 2021. The minister said that more than 60 percent of the crop has been harvested in the districts of the lower Sindh, however a quantity of 6,333.850 MT of wheat has been procured so far.
Hari Ram said that the policy guidelines for wheat procurement campaign were causing delay in procurement, therefore he proposed the Cabinet to waive the condition of producing agriculture pass book/form 7. He added that the waiver would attract the grower to get bardana from food department procurement centers.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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