National Assembly has appreciated the services, being rendered by the Pakistan Sweet Homes, in accommodating, serving and making orphaned children useful citizens of society.

The appreciation was made by Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf while announcing presence of students of Benazir Bhutto Shaheed Cadet College Larkana of Pakistan Sweet Homes in the visitors’ gallery on Thursday.

The speaker said process of establishing Sweet Homes was started during the tenure of Pakistan Peoples Party in 2009 with adoption of one child and now thousands of boys and girls are studying at dozens of such facilities across the country.

The House welcomed the visiting students by thumping desks. The students witnessed the House proceedings for quite some time.

The National Assembly also held discussion on Federal Budget for next fiscal year.

Taking part in the general discussion on the next fiscal year’s budget, Aslam Bhootani appreciated the government for presenting a balanced budget in a tough economic situation.  He drew the attention of the government toward addressing the problems being faced by the people of Lasbela.

PTI leader Mir Khan Muhammad Jamali criticized the government for raising prices of the petroleum products to the unprecedented level. He said the PML-N and its allies had made tall claims before coming to power, but today everyone is witnessing their performance. He said the government should focus on reducing prices of essential items to provide relief to the poor. He also urged the provincial governments to release funds to local bodies so that development can be ensured at the grass-root level.

Mir Khan Muhammad Jamali also rejected media reports of his resignation from the National Assembly. He made it clear that he will continue to remain part of the parliament as well as he is still with the PTI and its Chairman Imran Khan.

Syed Javed Husnain Shah expressed the belief that the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will steer the country out of crises and put it on the path of development. He demanded of the government to incentivize the agriculture sector to make the country self-sufficient in food.

Muhammad Jamal ud Din and Mohsin Dawar called for allocating sufficient funds for the rehabilitation of the displaced people of erstwhile tribal areas.  Mohsin Dawar proposed to facilitate trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan for the benefit of the local people. He said arrangements should be made for the repatriation of displaced Pakistani citizens from Afghanistan.  

Dr Afzal Khan Dhandla said recent increase in petroleum prices is unbearable for the common people and the government should immediately withdraw this raise. He said every ruler makes tall claims and builds castles in the air to befool the people and does nothing to provide respite to the people. He said special focus should be given to the agriculture sector and the agro-based industry. He demanded of the government to allocate more funds for the Thal University Bhakkar and infrastructure projects in district Bhakkar. He said agri loans should be waived off to save farmers from selling their lands to pay back their debt.

Regarding the suggestion of waiving off agri-loans, Minister for Economic Affairs Sardar Ayaz Sadiq proposed a committee, comprising members of the House from both sides of the aisle, to look into the matter. He said the government will arrange a meeting of the committee with the president of the Zarai Taraqiati Bank in this regard.

Nawabzada Iftikhar Ahmed Khan said more funds should be diverted toward the education, health, power, and agriculture sectors. He said a university should be established in district Muzaffargarh.

Rao Muhammad Ajmal Khan appreciated the government for withdrawing 17 percent General Sales Tax on farm machinery and agri inputs as well as allocating 21 billion rupees for the livestock sector. He, however, said more measures are needed to protect the agrarian community. He proposed a subsidy of at least 2,500 rupees on DAP fertilizer, enhancing support price for wheat and other crops, shifting of agri-tube wells on solar from expensive electricity to save power, and ban on establishing new housing colonies to conserve agri lands. He said prices of tractors should immediately be brought down. He said focus should be given to value addition to our agri produce.

Syed Hussain Tariq said lauded the government for presenting a balanced and reasonable budget. He called for long term and sustained policies to attract foreign and local investors for a stable economy. He said modern technology should be introduced to the agriculture sector to increase our per acre yield.                            

Ehsan Ul Haq Bajwa said district Bahawalnagar should be brought under the umbrella of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and linked with railways and motorways to facilitate the people of the area.

Amir Ali Khan Magsi called for brick lining of canals and water courses to conserve water for irrigation purposes.

Shahida Rehmani said women make 51 percent of Pakistan’s population, but a meager amount of 0.75 percent of development budget has been earmarked in the Finance Bill for next fiscal year for this segment. She said the government should enhance budgetary allocations for the development, safety and welfare of women. She said gynae products should be  subsidised.

The House will now meet at 10:30 a.m on Friday.