LAHORE - Minister Excise & Taxation Mujtaba Shuja-ur-Rehman has said loadshedding and energy crisis would completely be wiped out by 2018 and more foreign investment will come to the country.
While talking to delegations at his office here on Sunday, he said the Punjab government was making efforts to more improve governance, establish rule of law, ensure merit based and transparent recruitment, creation of one million jobs per year and ensure transparent and accountable governance.
He said reforms were being pursued for better service delivery, improvement of fiscal and financial arrangements and facilitating greater private sector participation in the economy.
The minister said Punjab’s vision was to revive growth and private sector investment to complement medium term development framework 2014-18 and Punjab Growth Strategy to achieve the growth rate of 8 percent by 2018.
He said overseas Pakistanis were a major source of foreign exchange and they were our ambassadors in respective countries and government was taking concrete steps for the welfare of overseas Pakistanis.
He asked to launch an awareness campaign about aspects of hypertension and a joint effort was required in which the government, physicians, NGOs, media and general public should play their part.
40MW to be produced by solid waste: The Punjab government has given go ahead to the Lahore Waste Management Company to set up a power plant with 40 Mega Watt capacity through recycling of solid waste.
The government has awarded the contract of preparing feasibility study to a renowned US company Eco Air that will also provide technical assistance to the project.
Wasif Azhar, Manager LWMC’s Waste to Energy Project stated here on Sunday that this unique project will not only help the LWMC in disposing of the solid waste in a useful way but it will also pave way to resolve the electricity shortfall in cheaper cost. He hoped that this initiative will attract more private investment in the energy sector.
Referring to the 40 Mega Watt project, he said that LWMC will award the contract to a private investment to set up the power plant on build-Operate and Transfer basis. He added that land for setting up the machinery has been identified at LWMC’s Landfill Site near Lakho Der along river Ravi that will be provided to the investor free of cost.