DADU, Oct 25: Sindh Governor Mohammedmian Soomro said on Friday that all outstanding liabilities against taluka municipal committees and union councils would be cleared soon.

The Sindh governor said that the salaries of employees of the local bodies would be paid soon.

Mr Soomro said that he had directed the local government’s finance departments to release the salaries to the employees as soon as possible.

He said that funds would soon be released for development works at Bado Jabal and the Gorakh Hill Station.

The governor said that former Sindh health minister Maj Gen (retd) Ahsan Ahmad had been dismissed from his post on charges of inefficiency and corruption.

Talking to newsmen at the exhibition hall in Sehwan on the first day of the annual Urs of Hazrat Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, the governor said that the dismissal of the provincial health minister was not an act of vengeance.

He said that a confidential inquiry had been instituted against Maj Gen (retd) Ahsan Ahmad a few months ago and the government had acted against him only after obtaining concrete proofs.

He said that the government had warned the minister about his alleged corruption a few days ago, adding that the warning had gone unheeded.

Mr Soomro said that the action would also be taken against anyone found to be involved in corruption with the sacked health minister.

The governor accused the former health minister of blaming others for his own misdeeds, saying that he was not being punished for joining the PPP.

Referring to the ruining of the Manchhar Lake by MNV drain’s brackish water, the Sindh governor said that the RBOD project would divert drain’s water into the sea to save the lake.

He warned suppliers of spurious pesticides to growers and ordered the agricultural department to conduct raids besides registering criminal cases against individuals involved in ruining the crops.

URS: Earlier, the governor inaugurated the three-day-long annual Urs of the Sufi saint Hazrat Lal Shahbaz Qalandar.

The Sindh governor was accompanied by the provincial minister for religious affairs, Auqaf, Zakat and Ushr, Mian Abdul Baqi, provincial secretaries Ashfaq Ahmed Memon, Faseehuddin Khan, and Ashiq Hussain Memon.

The governor inspected the on-going construction work of the Mazar and directed the concerned officials to complete the work on a timely basis.

Later, the governor visited various stalls at the exhibition hall and the Shahbaz Auditorium and announced grant of Rs100,000 for the children presenting a tableau.

FOLK CRAFT MUSEUM: The governor also inaugurated the folk craft museum, built by the culture and tourism department at a cost of Rs28.117 million in Sehwan.

MEETING HELD: Sindh Governor Mohammedmian Soomro also held a high-level meeting at the irrigation rest house in Sehwan.

The provincial minister for religious affairs, Mian Abdul Baqi, provincial secretaries Ashfaq Ahmed Memon, Faseehuddin Khan, Ashiq Hussain Memon and otherd attended the meeting.

The DPO, Ali Akbar Bhangwar, informed the meeting about measures taken to maintain law and order during the Urs.

The Sindh governor directed the DCO to abolish parking fee and other charges, being collected by the officials of various departments during the Urs.