The Chief Minister of Punjab, Maryam Nawaz Sharif, has announced that the Nawaz Sharif School of Eminence in Jhelum will become operational on 15 December 2026, while Green Bus services will be launched in Dina, Sohawa and Pind Dadan Khan in January 2027.
She made the announcements while addressing a ceremony in Jhelum for the distribution of Honhaar Scholarships and laptops among students.
Maryam Nawaz said her government was undertaking development projects worth billions of rupees across Punjab, insisting that public money was being spent on welfare and infrastructure.
She also pledged to take action against any minister found involved in corruption.
“I will not spare any minister if evidence of corruption emerges against them,” she said, adding that she would pursue allegations of wrongdoing whenever they came to her attention.
The chief minister acknowledged that corruption had not been eliminated in Punjab but accused political opponents of failing to address the issue during their time in office.
She said her government would recover public money from those who had misused it.
“Those who have objections should explain why they are sitting as ministers. Why don’t they resign and go home?” she asked.
“I am not claiming that corruption has been eliminated. But when I come to know about corruption in Punjab, I pursue the matter relentlessly. Is there no corruption in other provinces? The people who looted public money and indulged in corruption during 13 to 14 years of rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are now being exposed.”
Maryam Nawaz said the provincial government was establishing 300 Nawaz Sharif Schools of Eminence across Punjab, with modern facilities including air-conditioned classrooms, laboratories and qualified teachers.
She challenged critics to identify public-sector schools outside Punjab offering comparable facilities.
The government was also providing more than 100,000 scooters to students across the province, with recipients receiving training, she said.
Highlighting the importance of education, she said more than 50,000 schools in Punjab were providing education to millions of children.
She described education as the best investment in the country’s future and said every child was an ambassador of Pakistan.
CM Punjab also said students were being provided free travel on Green Buses operating across Punjab, adding that services in smaller towns would be comparable to those in major cities.
The chief minister said her government had broken the longstanding tradition of restricting development projects to major cities.
She cited visits to Sahiwal, Attock and Mandi Bahauddin, saying similar attention would be given to Jhelum.
She also referred to the Lillah-Jhelum Road project, criticizing political opponents who, she said, had failed to complete it during their four-year tenure.
The chief minister said thousands of kilometres of roads had been constructed across Punjab, with significant development work taking place in smaller cities.
She also praised a newly developed market in Jhelum, saying its facilities and appearance could compete with those in larger urban centers.
The chief minister highlighted improvements in healthcare, saying patients were receiving free stents, pacemakers and other cardiac treatment at the Jhelum Cath Lab.
She said cardiac catheterization laboratories had been established in 25 smaller districts, allowing patients to access treatment closer to home.
Maryam Nawaz cited the example of a man working in Dubai who had travelled from Faisalabad to Jhelum to receive a heart stent on his sister’s advice.
She said patients from smaller cities had previously been required to travel to major urban centers such as Rawalpindi and Lahore for specialized treatment.
On housing, she said loans had been provided for 250,000 homes under the Apni Chhat, Apna Ghar program over the past 18 to 24 months.
She described meeting a woman in Jhelum who had previously paid Rs15,000 in monthly rent but was now paying Rs14,000 in instalments towards owning her home.
The government was also establishing Punjab’s largest public-sector cancer hospital in Lahore, she added.
The chief minister said her administration was committed to providing government services and employment opportunities on merit, without personal recommendations or political influence.
Referring to an alleged assault on a salesgirl at a garment shop, she said the government would stand by ordinary citizens and would not tolerate the abuse of power by influential individuals.
“No influential person can dare to assault a poor citizen now,” she said.
Maryam Nawaz also said her government was working to ensure that deserving candidates from poorer backgrounds received public-sector jobs.
She said some self-proclaimed intellectuals were uncomfortable with the government’s policies because the administration was standing with poor people and ensuring justice.
Referring to the recent by-elections in Gujranwala and Sahiwal, the chief minister said all political opponents had joined forces, while proscribed organizations had also made every effort to influence the outcome. However, the PML-N had emerged victorious.
“People have grown tired of rhetoric and empty promises. No political narrative can compete with public service,” she said.
She added that people were increasingly preferring government hospitals and schools over private institutions because of improvements in public-sector facilities.
Expressing her commitment to expanding quality education, she said she wanted every child in Punjab to benefit from the Nawaz Sharif Schools of Eminence model.
The chief minister said opposition parties were intensifying their activities as the next elections approached, but had failed to deliver any meaningful development during their tenure. “In just three years, we have initiated projects worth billions and trillions of rupees.”
