Speaker Parvez Elahi said on Monday that the Punjab Assembly's annual budget was cut by Rs310 million in the wake of financial crisis emerged because of coronavirus breakout.

Addressing a meeting of the finance committee, he expressed gratitude to assembly members and staff for donating funds for CM Relief Fund last month.

Minister Makhdom Hashim, committee members Rai Yawir, Shujaat Nawaz, Mian Tariq, Kashif Mehmood, Mian Shafiq and Raees Nabeel Ahmad, and Secretary Muhammad Abdullah Khan attended the meeting.

The secretary presented the outlay of more than Rs2 billion annual budget to the meeting that was approved unanimously.

The minister and secretary praised the PA speaker for taking initiatives to donate for fund in war on coronavirus.

Last month, the Punjab Assembly speaker deposited more than Rs25 million in the Chief Minister Relief Fund for meeting monetary needs in war on coronavirus.

The deposited amount is a sum of donation by all the PA members and secretariat staff coping with the challenge.

Chief Minister Usman Buzdar thanked Speaker Parvez and other donors, saying that such steps will motivate other well-off people.

Parvez called for unity to get over corona crisis, saying: “We have to fight off corona with unity. Assembly members and staff joined hands for the cause.”   

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOavNaBX4NU