Historic development to be made in Mianwali: PM Imran

MIANWALI: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday said never in the history of Mianwali would so much development have taken place had there been another party at the helms of affairs and vowed to turn things around for the locals till the end of the incumbent government’s tenure.

“People of Mianwali have the biggest credit for my becoming prime minister and I will repay the city with service to it,” PM Imran said addressing the public gathering in Mianwali. He came to the city on a one-day visit to inaugurate multiple projects.

The prime minister will inaugurate Establishment of City Park at Old Cattle Mandi Mianwali, Dualisation of Sargodha-Mianwali Road (Phase-1) and Establishment of Miyawaki Forest at NAMAL Lake.

He will also lay the foundation stone of upgradation of Kalabagh-Shakardara Road, upgradation of DHQ Hospital Mianwali, Prime Minister Package-II, District Development Package, Establishment of Wooded Land at NAMAL Lake and Balkasar-Mianwali Road.

The PM will later visit NAMAL University Mianwali and address the students.

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According to the spokesman for National Highway Authority, the 415-kilometer long Balkasar-Mianwali-Muzaffargarh project will be completed in a year at a cost of Rs13.5 billion.

The main road will be widened up to 7.3 meters and 2.5-wide shoulders will be constructed on both sides. The project, on completion, will reduce expenses on fuel and maintenance of vehicles besides saving travel time.

The project will facilitate an easy supply of crops from field to market and create employment opportunities.

Imran Khan said he would try his best that the neglected areas, where development did not take place, should be developed by the time tenure of the government ended.

“The route from Mianwali to Muzaffarabad has to be constructed because accidents happened on this road. And it will be constructed within one and a half years,” he said.

The biggest issue facing the country and the world was inflation, he said adding that the inflation happened because of coronavirus lockdown which reduced trade activities which consequently boosted prices.

“Inflation is not just an issue of Pakistan, rather it is an issue of the entire world. After 1982, the United States has witnessed the biggest inflation due to the epidemic,” he said. He hoped that soon inflation would subside.

PM Khan said those who had less than Rs50,000 earning a month would be given flour and ghee at 30 per cent less prices under Ehsaas Ration programme.

“Each family of farmer will get interest-free loan up to 0.5 million, while health card will be start issuing in January next year across the province and by March every family in Punjab will have the card,” he said.

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He said any family could get treatment up to Rs1 million through the card.

Whereas, he said, 6.2 million people would get scholarships worth Rs47 billion in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab.

“I had promised that Pakistan will never become slave to international powers. Now Pakistan’s decisions would be taken in the best interest of the country,” he said.

Imran Khan said the government was ready to talk with the right and left people or whether they were the rebels of Balochistan or Waziristan.

“However, we will never reconcile with the people who looted the country after coming into power,” he said.

He blamed that electricity in Pakistan was expensive because all the contracts made in this sector were signed before the PTI government.