ISLAMABAD : The government on Friday told the Senate that it would review the recent hike in the prices of medicine to facilitate the masses.Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan said this while responding to a calling attention notice regarding the increase which has overburdened the people. Khan said some market-driven factors caused an increase in the price of medicines; however, the government would review these prices for the ease of people.
Prices of 360 medicines were decreased by the incumbent government, but the medicine companies challenged it with the Sindh High Court, he said. “The court has quashed most of their petitions and the government would do its best to bring down the prices,” he said. The minister said that the PML-N government had introduced a policy during its tenure in May 2018 to fix prices of medicines and the incumbent government has no role in the price hike. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan has expressed satisfaction over the reduction of coronavirus cases in the country.
Responding to the questions of senators during question hour, he said the situation is improving with each passing day and asked the people to be more careful on the eve of Eid-ul-Azha to avoid the spike in corona cases. He said Prime Minister Imran Khan’s smart lockdown policy has proved to be a success and is now being emulated by other countries around the world. He paid glowing tributes to the healthcare staff who laid down their lives in the fight against the pandemic. The minister of state said that no polio case has been reported in the country in the months of June and July this year. Minister for Communications Murad Saeed said the former rulers recklessly used the national exchequer during their foreign trips. He said former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif made the most visits to London whilst the PPP leaders to the UAE. He said the present government has been pursuing an austerity drive ever since it came to power. Minister for Aviation Ghulam Sarwar Khan said that Pakistan will file an appeal for resumption of flight operations in Europe by the end of this month. Responding to a call attention notice, he said the suspension of PIA flights by European Union Aviation Safety Agency is not for the first time. He said it was not only his statement or ill-fated plane crash in Karachi, which led to the suspension but the PIA was already under observation by EASA for safety hazards. The minister expressed hope that PIA flight operations to European countries will resume by the end of this year. He said the incumbent government will bring back the lost glory of Pakistan International Airlines. Ghulam Sarwar Khan said pilots’ license verification is being done in the great interest of the organization. He said during the investigation 28 licenses were canceled. He said the matter of dubious licenses will be brought to the logical end and criminal cases will be lodged against those who are found guilty. He said the government believes in across the board accountability to uplift the organization. The minister clarified that there is no political motive behind this accountability but it is the matter of human lives.