Caretaker Punjab Minister for Agriculture, Food and Planning & Development (P&D) Sardar Tanveer Ilyas Khan said Friday that no ongoing development project in Punjab has been suspended by the caretaker set up.
Talking to Business Recorder, he said a strong social media campaign was launched soon after he took over as caretaker provincial minister that the ongoing development schemes have been stopped while funding for these projects have also been suspended. "Neither the ongoing projects nor their funding has been suspended," he made clear, adding that all the ongoing projects are sailing smoothly in the province.
He said the role of caretaker set up is to provide roadmap, put forward suggestions and recommendations to keep the system operational until the new government takes charge after July 25 general elections. On agriculture side, he said, the department has also ensured payment to growers in line with the directions of the Chief Justice Pakistan. Also, he pointed out that the department has organized an international agriculture exhibition at the Lahore Expo a week back where some 40 foreign companies turned up to interact with Pakistani firms. He said this expo was a great success as many Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) have been signed between the two sides, including the possibility of barter trade between Pakistan and Central Asian States.
He further stated that he has also approved budget of Rs3.5 billion for the Punjab Seed Corporation to keep its operations intact. He said the caretaker set up would facilitate the Election Commission of Pakistan in carrying out elections smoothly.