Punjab govt sets up empowered committee to monitor various projects

The Punjab government on Thursday decided to establish an empowered committee of ministers which will have the powers to take all necessary decisions related to implementation of various projects and schemes in the state.

The decision was taken by the Punjab Cabinet, led by Chief Minister Amarinder Singh.

With Amarinder Singh as the chairman of the committee, the panel will have the local government minister and the finance minister as its members and the minister in-charge of department concerned as its co-opted member, an official release said here.

The committee will meet every week, at least for the first six months, and the administrative department would put its agenda of schemes and projects to the chief minister through its minister in-charge, for further placing it before the empowered committee for consideration.

To make tourism more disabled-friendly, the cabinet approved the necessary amendments to the Punjab State Culture Policy, 2017 and Punjab State Tourism Policy 2018, in compliance with the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.

As special cases, the cabinet approved the appointment of mountaineer Fateh Singh Brar and former Indian Army soldier Major Sumeer Singh as DSPs in the Punjab Police.

Brar, one of the youngest mountaineers in the country, had scaled Mt Everest at the age of 16 years on May 21, 2013, while Major Sumeer Singh was involved in a number of cross border operations and was instrumental in eliminating terrorists in cross border surgical operations conducted by the 9 PARA Special Force in Jammu and Kashmir, the release said.