MPAs have been instructed by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif to keep a careful eye on the caliber and openness of current development initiatives in their respective regions.

The Chief Minister met with the MPAs from Sahiwal district to discuss a range of political and development-related issues. Wilayat Shah, Qasim Nadeem, Arshad Malik, Nadeem Aslam Lodhi, Rana Riaz Ahmed, and Muhammad Hanif were among those who met CM Maryam Nawaz.

CM Maryam Nawaz declared during the meeting that Sahiwal would soon receive 14 more electric busses. Additionally, she instructed the MPAs to keep a careful eye on the caliber and openness of the city’s ongoing development projects.

The MPAs praised the Chief Minister’s public welfare programs and described Sahiwal City’s beautification as an exceptional and historic endeavor.

Additionally, they commended the Punjab Development Project’s implementation of development initiatives in Punjab’s cities and villages.

They conveyed gratitude for the sewerage and drainage projects in Sahiwal and nearby cities, as well as the proposal to create ten cutting-edge Nawaz Sharif Schools of Eminence in Sahiwal Division.

For the first time, they added, it is good that there is a distinct emphasis on tackling real public issues.

The MPAs also described the introduction of electric busses in Sahiwal as a praiseworthy gesture, stating that thousands of people are able to commute on routes like Arifwala Bypass, Yousafwala, Noor Shah, KFC Bypass, General Bus Stand to Kameer, Adda Sabeel, and Bala Mor.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has criticised the federal government over repeated increases in petroleum prices and rising national debt, saying the burden of economic policies is ultimately being passed on to the people.

Addressing the provincial cabinet meeting, the chief minister termed the continuous increase in petroleum product prices “extremely regrettable,” saying the direct impact was being felt by the poor and middle class.

Afridi said inflation had made life increasingly difficult for the poor, middle class and white-collar segments of society, with many struggling to afford even basic necessities and two meals a day.

Criticising the federal government’s economic policies, he said the repeated increases in petrol prices reflected a lack of clear direction. He claimed that Pakistan’s loans had risen from Rs43,000 billion accumulated over 74 years to Rs97,000 billion in the last five years, warning that the resulting burden would ultimately be borne by the public.

The KP chief minister also strongly condemned a recent statement by the Punjab chief minister, saying it was regrettable to compromise national interests for personal or political interests.

He said such statements were harmful not only to the interests of an individual province but to the state of Pakistan, and argued that they could contribute to the acceptance of an anti-Pakistan narrative internationally.

Afridi also condemned statements by federal ministers against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, saying the people and government of the province were increasingly concerned about how they were being treated and whether the province was being regarded as an integral part of Pakistan.

Pakistan’s ambassador to the United Nations Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said this week that over 4,700 Pakistanis have been killed in terrorism that originated from Afghanistan over the past three years, alleging that militant outfits operate from sanctuaries in the neighboring country with impunity.

“More than 4,700 innocent Pakistanis have lost their lives to terrorism emanating from Afghanistan over the last three years,” Ahmad told the UN Security Council during a meeting to discuss threats to international peace and security on the occasion of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks anniversary.

“We have faced some of the most callous terrorist attacks carried out by savage entities like TTP, the BLA, and its Majeed Brigade, which continue to operate with impunity from sanctuaries in Afghanistan, with significant external support,” the Pakistani envoy added.

Ahmad said entities such as the BLA operate freely in the absence of “restrictive measures and sanctions” imposed by the Security Council that he noted could have contained their activities.

“And other groups, including ETIM and ISIL, also need to be effectively countered,” he said, referring to the East Turkistan Islamic Movement and a regional Daesh affiliate.

Pakistan routinely blames Afghan authorities for allowing militants to cross the border and attack Pakistani law enforcers.

Pakistani security forces killed four militants affiliated with the TTP in the northwestern Kurram district on Friday, state media reported, among them an Afghan national named Ubaidullah Saad.

APP reported that Saad was a resident of Afghanistan’s Shah Qila village in Logar province.

“It is pertinent to note that Ubaidullah Saad was involved in multiple terrorist activities in Pakistan,” APP said.