GUJRANWALA, March 27: Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi announced on Saturday that Sui gas would be provided to Miraliwala, Nowshera Virkan, Khiali Shahpur and Qila Mian Singh villages. Speaking at a public meeting at Miraliwala village near here , the chief minister also ordered upgradation of the girls high schools of Qila Mian Singh and Miraliwala besides establishment of an intermediate college for girls in Miraliwala.

Pervaiz Elahi also announced that the road from Awan intersection to Nowshera Virkan would be widened beside desiltation of Nullah Deg.

Punjab ministers Chaudhry Iqbal and Rana Shamshad Khan, and PML-Q's district president and MNA Shahid Akram Bhinder also spoke.

The chief minister later visited the residence of Punjab Minister for Minorities Affairs Mrs Rufan Jolis.

EXHIBITION: The chief minister said that the government wanted to promote small and medium industrial units to provide maximum employment to skilled people.

He was speaking at concluding ceremony of the industrial exhibition at Gulshan-i-Iqbal Park here on Saturday.

Loans would be provided to small industrialists on 2 or 3 per cent mark up as earlier the rate was 20 to 25 per cent.

He said that new industrial estates would be constructed where all facilities, including labour colonies and hospitals, would be available for workers.

He said that all hurdles in the construction of third lane of GT Road from Gujranwala to Lahore had been removed while Rs15 million had been released for the purpose.

He said that traffic pressure on GT Road would be released following the construction of its third lane.

He said that another Rs150 million would be released in June this year. He said that Rs45 million had been allocated for uplift projects in the city.

The government was working for the establishment of a medical college and upgradation of the DHQ hospital.

Efforts were under way to set up medical college in Sialkot but senior doctors were not ready to go there to deliver lecture from Lahore as it would affect their evening practice. "But Gujranwala suits them," the chief minister said.

Earlier, Gujranwala Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Shaukat Javed and his colleagues apprised Pervaiz Elahi of the problems of industrialists.

The chief minister also inaugurated new blocks in the Gujranwala Institute of Future Technology (GIFT) on Sialkot Road and the Divisional Public School on GT Road.

He told the participants in the inaugural ceremonies that his government launched a three-year programme to achieve 100 per cent literacy rate by strengthening primary education and Rs180 million had been allocated for the purpose.

He said that Rs60 million would be given to the education department annually.