LAHORE: Chief Minister Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar Monday said that provision of basic life facilities along with social equality were high priority targets of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) manifesto in order to ensure welfare of common man.
While addressing the Naya Pakistan for all ceremony at Governor’s House, he said the constitution calls for fair provision of all such facilities to the masses, and added that the government was going to take steps to fulfil the promise of Naya Pakistan.
However, numerous economic challenges had to be encountered by the government after the coronavirus, as well as dengue and locust attack, but the country continued to move on under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan, he maintained.
The CM said that improving healthcare facilities was priority focus as it was ignored in the past. “The health budget was Rs 169 billion in the past which has been increased to Rs 399 billion by the PTI-led government”, he said.
Usman Buzdar said Naya Pakistan Sehat Card scheme would benefit every citizen in Punjab for getting free medical facility of upto one million rupees per annum and added that the card would be launched across Punjab from January while the same facility had already been introduced in DG Khan and Sahiwal divisions, respectively.
The scheme would be extended to the rest of the seven divisions from January next year and 30 million families, comprising 115 million people, would benefit from the facility in Punjab, he conveyed. About Rs 440 billion would be provided for the purpose, he maintained.
Chief Minister Usman Buzdar said: “A huge sum was allocated for the health sector for the first time as eight mother-and-child hospitals were being completed in Lahore and backward districts.”
Multan Nishtar-II, DG Khan institute of cardiology, institute of urology in Rawalpindi, Sheikh Zayed Hospital-II in Rahim Yar Khan and dental colleges were being built in Rawalpindi and Bahawalpur, he asserted.
Sardar Usman Buzdar said that a new 1000-bed hospital at Ferozepur Road was being planned along with the construction of new emergencies in three hospitals having total capacity of 400-beds.
Buzdar said: “The government has built 25 hospitals in three years, upgraded 158 health units and completed unfinished DHQ hospital project of MB Din along with the new DHQ hospitals in Chiniot, Hafizabad and Chakwal.” Similarly, the CM added that 78 new health facilities had also been developed and 91 new health schemes had been included in the district development package.
Besides this the PTI-led government established nine new social security hospitals in three years, while only 14 social security hospitals were built in 52 years, he highlighted. “Now industrial labourers were enjoying the best healthcare facilities in 23 social security hospitals”, concluded the chief minister.