ECC may okay Rs18.36b more for ECP today

Commission has sought funds for holding LG polls across country and periodic revision of electoral rolls

ISLAMABAD:

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has sought an additional Rs18.36 billion from the government for holding the local government polls and periodic revision of electoral rolls.

The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet will hold a meeting on Thursday (today), presided over by Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin, to review an eight-point agenda including the provision of funds to the ECP as well as the approval of payments to government-owned power plants in line with those of independent power producers (IPPs).

The meeting is also expected to approve the provision of technical supplementary grants and funds to the ECP, housing and works ministry, aviation division and defence ministry amounting to over Rs18.5 billion in total.

The ECC is likely to approve a technical supplementary grant of Rs18.36 billion for the ECP for holding local government elections in the country and periodic revision of electoral rolls.

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The Sir Syed School and College for Special Education, managed by the defence ministry, is also likely to receive the nod for a technical supplementary grant of Rs67.12 million for the current financial year 2021-22.

The participants of the meeting will also mull the approval of a technical supplementary grant of Rs23.33 million for housing and works ministry’s civil works in the current financial year.

The meeting is also expected to approve a technical supplementary grant of Rs142 million for the housing and works ministry so that it could renovate the Islamabad High Court building and judges' quarters

The committee is also expected to give the nod to additional funding for aviation division through a technical supplementary grant.

The ECC is also likely to approve additional funding for the airport security force through technical supplementary grants to the aviation division.

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The meeting will also approve ensuring uninterrupted supply of oxygen for medical purposes across the country.

Earlier this month, the ECC had approved the revised terms of the Saindak Gold and Copper Mine project – a joint venture between Pakistan and China – and extended the lease period for another 15 years to extract metals from the mine.

According to the revised terms, the share of the Pakistani government has been increased by 3% to 53% while the Chinese company has also agreed to enhance rent, royalty and social uplift payments to the federal and Balochistan governments.

The ECC had approved doling out another Rs8.2 billion under discretionary spending to parliamentarians to execute schemes in their constituencies ahead of the next general elections.