Govt releases Rs13 billion for uplift projects

Finance Minister Buledi says institutional reforms top priority of BAP-led govt

QUETTA: The Balochistan government has released Rs13 billion for carrying out the ongoing and new development projects in the province during the first quarter of the financial year 2019-20, Finance Minister Zahoor Buledi said on Tuesday.

The government had earmarked Rs108.114 billion to materialise 2,461 schemes during the current fiscal year. “The government has allocated Rs64.611 billion for 1,796 new schemes, while Rs43.502 billion had been earmarked for 665 ongoing development plans in the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) 2019-20,” Buledi said.

The minister remarked that the provincial government had sanctioned some 70% of 1,263 new schemes, which include main development projects in the province. He added that the Provincial Development Working Party (PDWP) had signalled for materialising 19 schemes which were the focus of the chief minister.

According to the PSDP documents, a priority has been given to education, commutation, health, public health engineering, local government, law and order, urban planning and development, the minister said.

The highest allocation of Rs24.6 billion has been made for 581 new development schemes in the communication sector and second highest allocation of Rs12.6 billion for 284 development schemes in the education sector.

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The provincial government will spend Rs12 billion on 574 development schemes in public health engineering department for supplying drinking water to the people who are facing shortage of the precious resource since long.

The government has allocated Rs2.1 billion for the 114 local governments’ related development schemes. The industries sector will get Rs862.15 million for implementing 16 development schemes.

The provincial government will spent Rs3.6 billion on 70 development schemes under the urban planning and development department. An amount of Rs1.6 billion million has been allocated for 34 schemes of the social welfare department.

Unsatiated greed of anti-development mafia

“It is for the first time in the history of Balochistan that such huge funds have been released in a short span of time that shows the government seriousness towards development of the province,” Buledi said, while highlighting government’s efforts to ensure maximum facilities to people.

The minister said that all the provincial departments had adopted the policy of zero tolerance towards corruption to promote merit and transparency. He observed that the institutions in Balochistan were being strengthened as the institutional reforms were the top priority of Balochistan Awami Party-led government.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 18^th, 2019.