Chief Secretary Punjab Yousaf Naseem Khokhar has directed the concerned authorities to expedite the pace of work on e-procurement project, adding that process of purchases in government and semi-government departments would be made more easy and transparent through the latest online system. He issued these directions while presiding over a meeting of the board of management of Punjab Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) at Civil Secretariat here on Wednesday. Speaking at the meeting, the Chief Secretary said that the PPRA must ensure transparency in the procurement of government departments and information technology (IT) should be dexterously used for this purpose. The meeting gave approval to making PPRA a financially-autonomous institution and charging fees for the provision of services. It was also decided to include secretaries of higher education, communication and works, energy and local government departments in PPRA’s board of management because of quantum of procurement in these departments. The meeting was attended by administrative secretaries of finance, planning and development and irrigation departments, managing director and board members of PPRA.
