LAHORE: Law minister Basharat Raja has said the final date for local government elections will be given by the Election Commission of Pakistan, adding the Punjab government is committed to hold LG polls before September this year.

Speaking at a workshop on Sustainable LG System here on Thursday, the law minister said new amendments were on the cards to make the local government law more effective.

“The new amendments included proposals to decrease the number of village councils from 25,000 to 8,000 and restoration of the district councils,” he said.

In view of the corona epidemic, the law minister said the LG elections were proposed to be held in three phases. In each phase, he said, full elections at all levels would be held in three divisions.

He said effective representation was being given to the women and youth in the new local government system and research cells were being set up in the law department and Punjab Assembly to improve the legislative process.

Published in Dawn, February 5th, 2021