Newly-created tehsils get cabinet's nod for LG polls.

PESHAWAR -- The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet on Tuesday approved a summary to declare 49 newly-created tehsils in merged and settled districts of the province as local areas as a requirement for holding the next local body elections in the province.

The cabinet meeting was chaired by Chief Minister Mahmood Khan and attended by ministers, chief secretary and administrative secretaries.

A statement issued here said the cabinet noted that under sections 4 and 5 of the KP Local Government Act, 2013, it was imperative to declare the new tehsils established by the board of revenue under the law recently as the local areas for the tehsil's government as the next local body elections would be conducted at the tehsils' subdivision level.

Of 49 tehsils, 25 are in merged districts and 24 in settled ones.

Cabinet also okays 33pc representation for women in tehsil councils

The cabinet also agreed to reserve 33 per cent representation in tehsil councils for women and five per cent for youth, farmers and minorities each.

The chief minister said the government fulfilled its promise of democratising the whole system of governance by taking it down to the grassroots level.

The cabinet reviewed the sustainable development strategy for 2019-23 presented by planning and development department that stressed for the road map by the political leadership and bureaucracy for the development of the province, reconciling the reforms agenda with the developmental strategy and redefining the direction for the social and economic development of the province.

The cabinet also agreed to the KP Whistleblower Protection and Vigilance Commission Rules, 2019.

The rules stipulate a search and scrutiny committee to be headed by the chief secretary and other members including additional chief secretary, secretaries of law and establishment and a member of provincial assembly make recruitments of its chairman and commissioners.

The cabinet approved the grant of exemption to the communication and works department for the continuation and acceleration of work on the 59 kilometers long road widening in Swat district from the KP Public Procurement Regulatory Authority Act.

It also approved to change the name of Katlung Interchange with the Babuzai Interchange on the Swat Expressway.

The cabinet also approved to constitute a committee under the chairmanship of special assistant to the chief minister on Industries with a 13-other members to review the process of inspection of industrial...