RDA’s Rs5.22b budget awaits final nod

RAWALPINDI: The Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) has prepared a Rs5.223 billion budget for the current year with an eye on the provincial government for contributions through special grants, documents available with The Express Tribune show.

According to the documents, the total income of the authority has been estimated at Rs5,223.972 million, while total expenditure is estimated at Rs5,222.864 million, for a small surplus of Rs1.108 million.

The budget would be presented before the RDA finance sub-committee for formal approval. Under RDA rules, the governing body was to approve and pass the annual budget, but it is presently non-functional.

Budget documents show the RDA expects to generate Rs749.966 million from its own resources, and expects to receive over Rs4.474 billion from the Punjab government through special grants.

Documents show that the authority would actually put together Rs100.212 million from its own revenue, including Rs3.5 million from “miscellaneous sources”, with an open balance of Rs646.254 million at its disposal for the new fiscal year.



Under the head of expenditure, the RDA has set aside Rs533.15 million for development work, Rs169.678 million for operating expenses, and Rs46.030 million for open expenditure. The civic agency plans to spend a mammoth sum of Rs4.474.006 million on other development work, including maintenance of metro bus stations, which would be provided for by the provincial government.

Under the development works, the authority plans to spend Rs710.866 million on widening and improvement of Stadium Road from Murree Road to IJ P Road, rehabilitation of Airport Road from Noor Khan Air Base to Koral Chowk, widening of Adiala Road from Government Servant Housing Foundation to Adiala Jail, rehabilitation and improvement of High Court Road from GT Road to Car Chowk, rehabilitation and improvement of Rawal Road from Airport Road to Chandni Chowk, widening and improvement of link road from Jamia High School for Boys to Government Hashmat Ali College and Ghosia Chowk, construction of streets in Mohalla Allahabad and Westridge, construction of streets in Awan Town and Gulshan-e-Iqbal, construction of streets in Mohalla Blue Lane Colony and Mohalla Zamindaran, and pre-feasibility of the New City Development along the motorway corridor.

The authority has set aside Rs3.693 billion for development and maintenance of the Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metro Bus project. The authority has divided the metro track into three phases for repair and maintenance.



The money will also be used on the upkeep of escalators, elevators and platforms at bus stations. The authority has set aside a chunk of the share for the maintenance of the command and control centre of the Punjab Metro Bus Authority in Saddar.

The RDA has also introduced three new schemes —- a Rs50 million dualization of link road from Tipu Road to Airport Road project, a Rs10 million feasibility study and detailed design of a signal-free road at Liaqat Bagh and Marrir Chowk, and a Rs10 million redesign of the junction linking Stadium Road with IJP Road.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 30^th, 2016.