Sialkot: PM imran Khan inaugurates private airline AirSial
The premier is on a day-long visit to Sialkot where he will be performing groundbreaking of various development projects worth Rs17 billion under the Punjab Intermediate Cities Improvement Investment Program. Addressing an event organized by the Sialkot business community following the inauguration of Air Sial – the third private airline of Pakistan – the premier reiterated the federal government’s aim to reduce poverty in the country and to help less developed areas including Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) and some districts of Balochistan and Punjab.
The premier would also break ground for the city’s sewage system and water supply scheme which would cost Rs 9.5 billion, inaugurate recreational parks for the general public costing Rs 300 million, and provision of latest machinery for solid waste machinery against Rs 600 million.
He would also be interacting with the business community besides launching the development projects
With a current fleet of three Airbus A320-200, the airline would operate flights to and from Sialkot, Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, and Peshawar.
Known for producing sports goods particularly the world’s finest footballs, Sialkot took another lead by launching the airline, after it had established the first privately owned airport in 2007 funded by the city’s business community.
PM promised to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs)
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday promised to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the country to lift people out of poverty.
He underscored that Federal Minister for Industries and Production Hammad Azhar and Adviser to Prime Minister on Commerce and Investment Abdul Razak Dawood and the business community have a solid interaction. “They listen to their problems and convey it to us, and we try our best to solve them,” he observed.
He further stressed the importance of industrialization in the country, adding that Pakistan’s industrialization was faster than many countries worldwide.
The prime minister hailed China’s poverty alleviation strategy, adding that Pakistan will use China as a model to lift its people out of poverty.
The premier hailed the Ehsaas program as being a significant initiative launched to tackle poverty in Pakistan. He reiterated the country’s need to increase its exports and decrease imports in order to solve the problem of foreign reserves.
When imports increase and exports decrease, it puts pressure on our economy, increasing our current account deficit.
