Punjab Govt committed to assist IDPs, says Shahbaz

LAHORE - Punjab Chief Minister, Shahbaz Sharif has said that relief and rehabilitation of displaced persons of
Swat is the collective responsibility of the whole nation and the government and people of Punjab are in the
forefront of relief activities for their brethren in their hour of need.
The CM said a special fund has been set up for the assistance and rehabilitation of affectees and transparent
utilization of all donations is being ensured. He said that govt has also launched a website containing complete
information regarding collection of donations and their distribution.
He was presiding over a high level meeting held to review measures for the relief and rehabilitation of affectees
of Swat, here on Sunday. Member National Assembly, Hamza Shahbaz Sharif, Senators Ishaq Dar and Pervez
Rasheed, Senior Special Assistant Pervaiz Malik, Senior Member Board of Revenue, Secretaries of Food,
Commerce and Investment and Information departments, Director General Relief as well as senior officers
concerned were present. The CM said government has adopted an effective strategy for the relief and
rehabilitation of the persons displaced from Swat, Malakand and other areas and not only free atta is being
supplied to the affectees staying at relief camps but essential items are also being dispatched daily through
trucks and trains.
He said more than 50 medical teams are engaged in providing health facilities to the families living in camps
while medicines worth rupees five crore have also been sent to the affectees so far. He said that a close
coordination is being maintained with the NWFP govt and relief items are being provided according to the
needs of the affectees.
The CM said people of Punjab are with their brethren of Swat in their hour of need and are donating generously
and their spirit is laudable. He asked the members of the committee collecting funds for displaced persons to
contact chambers of commerce & industry, industrialists and philanthropists in the province and collect
maximum donations.
Shahbaz Sharif further said that a foolproof system has been evolved for ensuring transparent utilization of all
funds and third-party system is also being adopted for ensuring proper utilization of every penny. He directed
that thewebsite for relief and rehabilitation of displaced persons should be updated on daily basis and all
information should also be provided in Urdu language for the benefit of the people. Senator Ishaq Dar