LAHORE: Punjab Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs Raja Basharat has said that due to lack of interest of provincial departments, there are difficulties in running the proceedings of the Punjab Assembly.

The Minister was chairing a meeting on Assembly Business at the Civil Secretariat on Thursday. Focal persons of all the provincial departments nominated for the Punjab Assembly including the law secretary were also present on the occasion.

Expressing deep concern over the non-attendance of Assembly Secretariat by focal persons to collect next day business, the Law Minister said that Speaker Punjab Assembly Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi had especially stressed on the need to improve the situation. He urged that the focal person of each department would receive the agenda of the next day from the office of law department and parliamentary affairs at the end of the daily assembly session and mark attendance in the existing register there on. He said that whatever the next day’s assembly business would be, the focal person would immediately bring it to the notice of his secretary and minister so that they could prepare answers timely.

Raja Basharat warned that if there was any negligence in this matter in future, it would be brought to the notice of the Chief Secretary Punjab and appropriate action would be taken.

It may be mentioned here that each provincial department has appointed a deputy secretary level officer as focal person for the collection of assembly business.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021