PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday came up with proposals to keep food and medicine supplies going during the lockdown.

Shehbaz said food and other essential items should be retailed by the Utility Stores Corporation through home delivery ordered through phone calls and apps. He said that post offices and NLC’s human resource can also be used for this purpose. He said that railway freight trains should be used to transport these items to different parts of the country on a mass scale.

Shehbaz, who is also Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly, proposed that subsidy should be given on food and other essential items through Bait-ul-Maal and BISP. He said that all personnel involved in this operation must be provided complete safety kits.

The PML-N chief paid rich tribute to doctors, paramedics, armed forces, the Rangers and the police for their service to the nation in these testing times. He said that ensuring protection to front line soldiers in the fight against the pandemic is critical to entire nation’s safety. He said the private and corporate sector can also help in this regard.

The PML-N president said there is no second opinion on a nationwide shutdown after the spike in coronavirus cases in the country. He called for an immediate disinfection drive through municipal staff across the country, especially in cetres of infection and high density areas. He pointed out the grave situation in Rawalpindi’s Bara Koh area and called for immediate attention to that area. He renewed his call for incorporating the opposition’s proposals into the “insufficient and vague” economic package announced by the government. He demanded that the Parliamentary Committee on Covid19 must be upgraded to the level of Parliamentary Monitoring Committee so that it can analyse and ensure effective implementation of steps and point out flaws.

Shehbaz demanded that the Sindh government’s Charter of Demands must be sent to the federal government and approved immediately. He said the Council of Common Interests (CCI) should meet on a daily basis and the local governments in Punjab must be reinstated immediately. He said that interest rate must be cut at least by four percent.

He said this is not the time for mindless tantrums fuelled by vengeance and prejudice; sanity, unity and coherence must prevail.