Daily Times

Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar said on Tuesday that the government had decided to use solar energy in southern Punjab schools.

He said this while presiding over an important meeting at his office on Tuesday. The meeting decided to transfer 10,800 southern Punjab schools to solar energy. The chief minister directed to complete the target by December, 2019. “Solar-based electricity will be provided to far-flung areas where transmission lines are not available. The people living in the remote areas of Rajanpur, Cholistan, Thal and DG Khan will be provided the facility of solar energy. The government will adopt the off-grid solution to provide electricity to remote villages,” he said.

He also directed the Energy Department to provide a feasibility report in this regard.

The meeting further decided to transfer universities to solar energy in stages. In the first phase, UET Lahore will be transferred to solar energy and other universities will also be shifted to the solar source of energy gradually.

The chief minister said that BHUs would be gradually transferred to solar energy and water supply schemes would be run through solar energy as well.

He directed officials to expedite the ongoing campaign against electricity-thieves and directed the Chief Minister’s Task Force to continue their indiscriminate action for curbing the theft of electricity.

Action should also be initiated against the government officials involved in the theft of the electricity, he added.

Usman Buzdar said that great potential of generating solar energy was available in Punjab.

The lightening of schools through solar panels is an important initiative of the government.

It should be moved forward with speed because it is an investment for the future of the country. The installation of solar panels will help to ensure uninterrupted supply of electricity to the schools, he added.

The chief minister was told that 3,000 schools have been transferred to solar energy, while 32,000 cases have been registered during the last nine months. Thousands of people have also been arrested for stealing electricity in a campaign against the theft of electricity.

The Energy secretary gave a briefing about departmental performance, new initiatives and the projects of transferring schools and villages to solar energy. The chief secretary, the Energy secretary, the SMU head, the Punjab Power Development Board MD and others attended the meeting.

Separately, the chief minister presided over a high-level meeting of Punjab Land Record Authority at his office on Tuesday.

The meeting decided to further ease the process of obtaining property documents. The chief minister announced a major initiative of issuing property documents through 24 commercial banks along with Arazi centers in the province.

Under the service-level agreement between Punjab Land Record Authority and 24 commercial banks, the banks will be given access to the digital land record. The chief minister said that commercial banks would also verify the property documents and the people would be able to get their property documents through commercial banks.

He said that farmers would be facilitated to get loans from commercial banks as they had to visit banks and arazi centers again and again for this purpose. Under this system, provision of loans will be ensured to the farmers within three days, he added.

The chief minister said that an effective monitoring mechanism should be devised under the new system and provision of loans to the farmers should be ensured within the given time.

He said that the decision of releasing the property documents through commercial banks was a milestone initiative which would facilitate the people.

Separate counters will be set up in banks for the release of ownership deeds and this will enhance the scope of services.

“More initiatives will be introduced to provide relief to the people,” the CM said. Revenue Minister Malik Muhammad Anwar and Punjab Land Record Authority Chairman Sardar Ahmad Ali Dreshak were also present.