ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday said the celebrations of 12th Rabiul Awwal in Islamabad will be the biggest event in the history of Pakistan, adding the event will be celebrated all over the country with great fervor.
Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired a high-level meeting on the preparations for 12th Rabiul Awwal and received a detailed briefing in this regard. The meeting was attended by Federal Ministers Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, Noorul Haq Qadri, Shafqat Mahmood, Special Assistants Shahbaz Gill, Usman Dar, Senator Faisal Javed, MNA Amir Mahmood Kayani and the concerned officers. In addition, Sindh Governor Imran Ismail, Senator Saifullah Niazi and Dr Ata-ur-Rehman attended the meeting through a video link.
Meanwhile, PM Imran also directed the Ministry of Climate Change (MoCC) to review the targets and formulate new goals aiming at fast-tracking the steps required to preserve natural environment. He emphasised that preservation of Pakistan’s national parks is paramount and we should induct the trained manpower and utilise modern technology.
The prime minister accorded in-principle approval for the “National Climate Change Policy, 2021” and “National Wildlife Policy, 2021” and directed that a special zone in the Margalla Hills be declared as a leopard preservation zone.
He also approved establishment of Wildlife Information Centre at Islamabad’s Marghazar Zoo. He said Pakistan has established its credibility as a green champion due to the flagship 10-billion tree programme and emphasised that the world must help developing countries cope with the climate change impacts.
Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired third meeting of the PM’s Committee on Climate Change on Wednesday.
He said it was our government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which undertook the initiative of billion-tree tsunami programme and now the whole world is following our footsteps. He said the international community is acknowledging Pakistan’s realistic and tangible steps to mitigate impacts of the climate change.
The prime minister also directed for the establishment of a think-tank to coordinate efforts between various ministries and devise out-of-the-box solutions to mitigate impacts the climate change. He appreciated the efforts of SAPM Malik Amin Aslam for environmental protection and highlighting Pakistan’s efforts in this field.
Earlier, SAPM on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam briefed the meeting in detail about the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), Climate Change Policy, National Wildlife Policy and Green Climate Diplomacy.
The meeting was attended by Federal Ministers Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Syed Fakhar Imam, Muhammad Hamad Azhar, Chaudhry Moonis Elahi, NSA Dr Moeed Yousaf, Minister of State Ms Zartaj Gul, SAPM Dr Shehbaz Gill, CM Balochistan Jam Kamal Khan and CM Gilgit Balitistan Mr Khalid Khursheed. Besides, CM Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar, CM Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mehmood Khan, PM AJ&K Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi and Minister Environment Sindh Ismail Rahu joined the meeting via a video link.
The prime minister also chaired a meeting to review the progress of Integrated Development Plan for Gilgit Baltistan. He said: “We are focused on accelerating the pace of work on various development projects in Gilgit Baltistan by taking effective measures to ensure delegation of administrative and financial powers.”
The prime minister directed the authorities concerned to clear all the legal and procedural hiccups in this regard to facilitate the people of Gilgit Baltistan who have to travel long distances to reach Islamabad for getting their issues resolved. He also directed to provide internet connectivity to the area at the earliest in order to provide better communication facilities to the local population.
Earlier, the prime minister was briefed that the implementation has started on the historic five-year development package for Gilgit-Baltistan, announced by his government early this year. Under the package, Rs 370 billion would be released to GB for various development projects till FY 2025-26.
The meeting was attended by Federal Ministers Muhammad Hammad Azhar, Ali Amin Khan Gandapur, Syed Amin-ul-Haque, Dr Muhammad Farogh Naseem, SAPM Dr Shahbaz Gill and CM Gilgit-Baltistan Khalid Khursheed along with senior officers concerned.
