The Punjab Auqaf Department will spend around Rs680 million on the maintenance and repair of mosques and shrines under its control.
A sum of Rs607.439 million will be utilised on ongoing 19 schemes and new district development projects, while Rs72.561 will be utilised on four new schemes, announced Syed Rafaqat Ali, the chief minister advisor on Auqaf Thursday.
He said that the Walled City of Lahore Authority and the Archeology Department have jointly fixed a fund of Rs350.57 to renovate Badshahi Mosque in Lahore.
Separately, Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi has approved the installation of automated umbrellas at the shrines of Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh (RA) in Lahore and Hazrat Fariduddin Masood Ganj Shakar (RA) in Pakpattan.
While chairing a meeting about the Auqaf Department at his office, the CM called for an early completion of a water supply scheme for Data Darbar within two weeks.
He was told that a 1,500-feet-long water supply line, out of a total of 4,000 feet, has been replaced while the rest of the work is going on. He also approved the construction of a multi-storey parking plaza which would be linked with Data Darbar’s basement through an underground passage.
It would also be linked through an overhead bridge for pedestrians.
Moreover, the CM announced that the re-modeling and surface-lifting of Data Darbar Chowk would be done and disclosed that the initial plan for the upgradation of Darbar Hazrat Baba Farid Ganj Shakar has also been chalked out.
Giving details, he added that an overhead bridge would be built along with a parking plaza for visitors. He also ordered an early completion of facilities for visitors, including the upgradation of a dispensary and almonry of Darbar Fariduddin Ganj Shakar.
Besides, the provision of facilities in Darbar Baba Hazrat Moj Darya would be completed soon, he said, adding special allowance announced for Auqaf Department employees have been released. Special Assistant Auqaf Syed Rafaqat Ali Gillani, Qaiser Abbas Magsi and others attended the meeting.
Separately, a delegation of the Forman Christian College (A Chartered University) comprising Rector Dr Jonathan, former rector Dr James A Tebbe, Registrar Dr Nayer Fardows, Dr Alexander John Malik and Dr Matthew met Parvez Elahi at his office on Thursday.
“The FC College University is one of the best institutions whose students have brought home laurels in every field,” the CM said, adding that educational facilities would be improved further while educational schemes would be completed on a priority basis. Stringent measures and harsh punishments were in place now to overcome the menace of drugs at educational institutions, he added.
“An education taskforce had also been established to improve performance of colleges, universities and education boards,” he said. Dr James Tebbe appreciated the role being played by Elahi in setting up higher education institutions.
Principal Secretary to CM Muhammad Khan Bhatti, former principal secretary GM Sikandar, secretaries of finance and higher education departments and others were also present.
