The procedure to pass the Punjab budget was formally started on Wednesday as the government presented 41 demands for grant worth of more than 1.84 trillion rupees in Punjab Assembly. The opposition moved cut motions on six demands for grant including the Food and Agriculture but both were rejected by the government with majority.
As per the details, the session of Punjab Assembly started with delay of more than one and half hour from its scheduled time with Speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi in the chair. As many as 41 demands for grant were presented by the government for passage. The opposition moved cut motions on Food, Agriculture, Police, Education and Health but only Food and Agriculture were discussed in the House. The cut motion on Food was moved by PML-N’s Bilal Yasin that was opposed by Senior Minister Abdul Aleem Khan. Speaking on the occasion, Aleem Khan said that it happened only for the third time in the history of Pakistan that the farmers were given full payment of wheat. We made a target of 4.5 million metric ton wheat for the food security, he said. He criticized the opposition as he said that the projects of Ch Pervaiz Elahi were halted when the PML-N was in government. Opposing the cut motion on Agriculture, minister Nauman Langrial said that there was bumper crop of wheat this year in Punjab but still the opposition is making hue and cry. He was of the view that Punjab has surplus wheat and it is being imported only for other provinces. He further added that the government is introducing new seeds to get good results and it will help a lot to our farmers.
Speaking on his cut motion, PML-N’s Bilal Yasin said that the price of wheat was at 1300 rupees per mund and sugar was at 52 per KG in PML-N’s tenure but it is now much higher than that time. He further added that Punjab used to export wheat to other provinces and even to Afghanistan during PML-N tenure. According to Bilal, who was the Food Minister in last PML-N government, Sugar Mill Association is very strong in Pakistan but yet Shehbaz Sharif used to call them even at night to give relief to the masses. He was of the view that PTI came into power with a promise to reform the institutions but it failed miserably. The Punjab’s food minister was sacked but no action was taken against the real culprits, he added.
PPP’s parliamentary leader Syed Hassan Murtaza asked where they have gone who looted this country. Where is Jehangir Tareen? Who helped him in leaving the country, asked PPP leader in the House. He was of the view that NAB only summons Asif Zardari, Shehbaz Sharif and Nawaz Sharif but it didn’t take any action against those who are responsible for the wheat and sugar crisis.
PML-N’s Bilal Akbar Khan, Mehwish Sultana and Ch Iqbal also spoke on the cut motions. The session was later adjourned to meet again on Thursday afternoon.