LAHORE The Punjab government is keeping a mum over the up-gradation of a first Chinese Cultural Centre (Jiangsu) established in the provincial capital some years ago with a purpose to create mutual harmony and increase friendship between Punjab and Jiangsu province of China. The project of Jiangsu Cultural Centre (JCC) was a brainchild of a former Punjab Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi and the Centre was established in the premises of Punjab Institute of Languages, Arts and Culture (PILAC). The project started functioning in 2009 and in very start it was one year project with the budget of Rs 18.8 million but extended for two more years. The institute has been working without any head since its establishment, however, a programme coordinator Safoora Bokhari is heading the institute who, according to an insider, merely visits the office once or twice in a week. When this scribe contacted Safoora over her cell phone to get her version on the issue, she declined to comment on the issue and switched off her cell phone. The JCC, which lies under the Punjab Information Department, is lacking its own building and is currently running the business in premises (PILAC). The purpose of the establishment of the institute was to establish friendship and provincial relations between Punjab and Jiangsu province of China and enhancement of mutual understanding and appreciation of cultural norms, social customs and folklore with the objectives to consolidate and develop financial cooperation between the two provinces. It was also purposed to facilitate the people of the Punjab for learning the Chinese language through arranging long, medium and short term training courses and workshops and to undertake cultural exchanges programmes between Jiangsu and Punjab by arranging the visits of the teams of artists and performers and exchanges of Radio and TV programmers for promoting each others culture. PILAC Director General Tariq Javed Afridi while talking to TheNation said his institute had been bearing the expenses including electricity, telephone and other utility bills since the establishment of JCCs. Urging the authorities concerned to play their role in vacating their building from JCC, he said the JCC had no connection with Punjabi institute so it should removed from here to any other place. He further said JCC had captured their library building due to which they had shifted their library on the upper story and the old age visitors were suffering and quitted to visit library. Meanwhile, an employee of Jiangsu Centre told this scribe that they were promised many times by the authorities concerned regarding their outstanding dues but they have yet not received the dues and due to which their families were facing difficulties to meet their daily needs.