Punjab Assembly passes the bill for free and compulsory education to all children of the age of five to sixteen years

Lahore: Punjab Assembly has passed Punjab Local Government Amended Act 2014 in order to empower the Election Commission of Pakistan to delimit the constituencies for local government elections in the Punjab.

It also passed the Punjab Free and Compulsory Education Bill 2014 for providing access to free and compulsory education to all children of the age of five to sixteen years.

The government will only determine limits outside Municipal Corporation, District Council and Municipal Committee and also fix the number of union councils in Municipal Corporation, metropolitan corporation Lahore and district council. The powers of delimitations of union council will be with the Election Commission.

Similarly, government will determine the wards of municipal committee whereas delimitations of wards will be the responsibility of Election Commission. Moreover, there will be six wards in every union councils and Election Commission will delimit these wards. Similarly, Election Commission will also prepare voter lists for local government election and Election Commission has been empowered through Punjab Local Government Ordinance 2014 (Second Amendment).

Federal government has also empowered Election Commission to prepare voter lists and delimitations of local government through an ordinance. The purpose of the Punjab Strategic Coordination Bill 2014 is to provide for establishing the Provincial Security Council and Punjab Strategic Coordination Board in order to inter-alia, introduce effective measures to counter terrorism in the Punjab.

The Punjab Free and Compulsory Education Bill 2014 is aimed at providing access to free and compulsory education to all children of the age of five to sixteen years in compliance of Article 25A of the Constitution of Pakistan. According to the Bill, private schools have also been bound to share this responsibility of the state. The Punjab Overseas Pakistanis Commission Bill 2014 is aimed at establishing the Punjab Overseas Pakistanis Commission in order to receive and redress grievances of the overseas Pakistanis relating to government agencies and to deal with the ancillary matters.

The Commission will receive complaints through internet and ask the concerned departments to redress these complaints. The purpose of the Punjab Registration of Godowns Bill 2014 is to provide registration of godowns in the Punjab in order to ensure a comprehensive system regarding stable supply and availability of essential articles for elimination of hoarding.

Every kind of fee imposed on farmers in cattle markets has been abolished through Punjab Local Government Bill 2014 (Bill No. 19 & 20). A committee has been constituted in each division for running cattle markets on modern lines. Government will also set up few cattle markets through its own resources.