CM Gandapur decides special package for pregnant women in backward areas

As an important step towards maternal and child health care as well as preventing stunted growth of infants, the Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Sardar Ali Amin Khan Gandapur has decided in principle to provide special package to women with pregnancy in the backward areas of the province.
Under the package, women would be provided with nutrients/food supplements for a specific time period during and after pregnancy. The Chief Minister has underlined the need for pragmatic steps to reduce the prevailing infant mortality rate in the province, and decided that midwifery sector in the province, would be further strengthened by aligning it with the contemporary needs and requirements, in addition to ensuring strict implementation of Child Marriage Act of the provincial government.
He was chairing the 4th meeting of the Provincial Population Task Force, held here at Chief Minister’s House Peshawar on Tuesday. Provincial cabinet members Arshad Aiyub, Meena Khan Afridi, Faisal Tarakai, Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif, Mishal Yousufzai, Liaqat Ali Khan, Chief Secretary Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry, Additional Chief Secretary Syed Imtiaz Hussain Shah, concerned administrative secretaries and officials of Population Welfare and partner departments attended the meeting.
The participants on the occasion, unanimously emphasized the need for implementing the law related to make blood test mandatory in “Nikah Nama” directing the authorities concerned to take steps for providing blood test facilities at local level for this purpose.
The meeting further urged upon authorities to ensure easy access of people to the services and facilities of family planning, and decided that the services and facilities relating to family planning, would be provided at all healthcare centers across the province. It was also decided to launch special awareness campaign for the general public to this effect.
Besides other initiatives, seminars would be arranged for the awareness of the students of colleges and universities for this purpose. Briefing the participants about demographic aspects of the province, it was informed that the population growth rate in the province is at lowest side, as compared to other provinces.
Addressing the participants, the chief minister said that rapidly growing population is a big challenge not only for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but the entire country, we need to have an integrated strategy to deal with this challenge in an efficient and meaningful manner.
He said that it is much needed to balance the available resources and population; the government, partner organizations and private sector would have to have an integrated approach for this purpose.
He directed the concerned authorities to devise viable plan for addressing the issues related to maternal and infant mortality and stunting growth, further directing that the population welfare centers should be established in the areas, where healthcare centers are not available.
Later, the chief minister also chaired a meeting regarding financial issues of the public sector universities and thoroughly discussed the factors causing financial constraints for universities and avenues for making universities self-sufficient by effective management and utilization of their properties.
Minister for Higher Education Meena Khan Afridi, Advisor on Finance Muzzamil Aslam, Secretary Higher Education Arshad Khan and Vice Chancellors of Different public Sector universities attended the meeting.
The chief minister constituted a committee comprising Minister Higher Education, advisor Finance, Secretary Higher Education, and representatives from public sector universities of different regions, the said committee will minutely examine the issues of public sector universities and submit detail report to the chief minister.
The committee will also submit recommendations for the self sufficiency of universities. The chief minister, directed the quarters concerned to ensure payment of salaries for the months of May and June to the employees of universities further directing the high ups of universities to submit realistic demands along with necessary details to finance department.
He also directed the universities heads to work out needs and plans for the solarization of universities to cut down the exorbitant electricity bills adding that the provincial government will extend all out support to universities for solarization on public private partnership.