Despite difficulties, govt presented balanced, factual budget: CM Buzdar.

LAHORE -- Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar on Tuesday said that despite difficult circumstances in the wake of coronavirus pandemic, the Punjab government has presented a balanced budget for fiscal year 2020-21, which was based on facts.

Delivering a speech in the Punjab Assembly, he said the provincial government was working proactively to fight coronavirus and locusts and the steps taken by it had proved productive. He apprised the house that funds amounting to two billion rupees had been released to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) to combat locusts attack in the province, and the latest equipment and a special digital application had also been developed against locusts.

The Punjab government disbursed a hefty amount of Rs 65 billion among the needy families in the province under the Ehsaas programme, he said.

Usman Buzdar said that Punjab was supposed to receive Rs 852 billion from the federal government before the COVID-19 outbreak; however, the province had to bear a loss of Rs 635 billion as it did not receive that amount due to virus emergency in the country.

Highlighting salient features of the provincial budget 2020-21, he said that the government allocated funds worth Rs 105 billion to fight coronavirus.

The government has been striving to keep working the construction sector so that the labour community may earn their livelihood during the lockdown period.

The Punjab government approved hiring of 10,000 police personnel besides purchase of 600 vehicles for the Police Department and construction of 45 police stations, he said adding that the network of Rescue-1122 service would be extended to every tehsil of the province.

During austerity drive in the province, supplementary grants am,ounting to Rs 61 billion were rejected, whereas expenditures of the CM office were reduced by 37 per cent.

Usman Buzdar said that 12,000 health officials, paramedical staff would be hired, while 12 new hospitals would be established in the province.

The Punjab government would start development projects in small cities with funding from the Asian Development Bank and other donors, he said adding that the Punjab government had increased development budget by 5 billion rupees, whereas an increase of Rs 10 billion had been made in the local government budget.

Buzdar said that Rs 32.4 billion had been earmarked for the Irrigation Department, Rs 31 billion for Agriculture whereas the health sector budget had been...

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