Industrial Estate and Artisan Village for Punjab CM’s hometown approved

LAHORE: The 108th meeting of Punjab Small Industries Corporation (PSIC) Board of Directors on Thursday approved the establishment of an industrial estate and an artisan village in the hometown of Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar.

The meeting was chaired by Provincial Minister for Trade and Industries Mian Aslam Iqbal. The industries secretary, PSIC managing director and board members were also present.

The meeting approved establishment of the small industrial estate on an area of 50 acres in Rakh Choti Dilana, Dera Ghazi Khan and the artisan village comprising 16 Kanal land in Taunsa Sharif.

The meeting also took various financial and administrative matters, including constitution of a committee to examine the Chief Minister’s Self-Employment Scheme being run through Akhuwat.

The committee would submit its recommendations within next two weeks after a detailed review of the scheme and decisions about the scheme would be taken in the light of the recommendations.

Addressing the meeting, Aslam Iqbal hoped that the artisan village would help promote the local heritage along with facilitating 400 artisans of the area.

He directed that establishment of an artisan village near Kartarpur Corridor be reviewed as well. Similarly, re-functioning of dysfunctional a furniture design centre in Chiniot should be ensured and all such PSIC-operated centres should be reactivated in the province.

The minister directed the officers concerned to complete the development works in small industrial estates as soon as possible. The Punjab Small Industrial Estates Policy should be fully followed in this regard, he added.

An industrial estate will be set up on Lahore-Sialkot motorway as revitalising the industrialisation process is important to encourage trade and economic activities, the minister said.