Petroleum Division's Rs4.643b budgetary proposals approved

ISLAMABAD:

The National Assembly Standing Committee on Energy (Petroleum Division) on Wednesday expressed serious concerns over inordinate delay in completion of gas supply schemes pending for the last several years.

The committee meeting, chaired by Imran Khattak, was of the view that the Petroleum Division should make efforts to get the unfinished schemes revalidated after the closure of financial year.

The lawmakers formed a sub-committee to resolve the issues related to the unfinished development schemes in different parts of the country.

After a thorough discussion and scrutiny of the Petroleum Division's budgetary proposals for the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP 2021-22), the body approved an amount of Rs4643.07 million as demanded by the ministry.

The committee members desired that an amount of Rs3491.580 million required for all gas schemes that had been approved during the period from 2013 to 2018, should also be included in the next PSDP.

On a matter raised by Muhammad Ali Khan regarding the removal of sportsmen employed in the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited and the Sui Southern Gas Company, the managing directors of the two companies said restructuring was being done and only contractual employees were being removed.

On the committee's directions, they committed to take up the matter with their respective boards and submit a report in its next meeting.

The meeting was attended by MNAs Junaid Akber, Malik Anwar Taj,  Noor Alam Khan, Shahid Ahmad, Jai Parkash, Chaudhary Khalid Javed, Khuram Dastgir Khan, Chaudhry Muhammad Barjees Tahir, Sardar Muhammad Irfan Dogar, Mutaza Javed Abbasi and Iqbal Muhammad Ali Khan, besides Special Secretary Petroleum Division and senior officers of the relevant departments. APP