PAC gives Irrigation dept an earful

QUETTA:

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) expressed its strong dissatisfaction with the Balochistan Irrigation Department's performance, citing project delays and significant cost overruns due to inefficiencies.

The PAC meeting, chaired by Asghar Ali Tareen at the Balochistan Assembly, reviewed audit reports for 2021-22 and 2022-23, along with appropriation accounts from 2016-2019. Chairman Tareen emphasised the massive financial impact of incomplete projects, asking, "Who will cover these losses?"

The committee criticised the department's lack of timely action, particularly in removing bushes and constructing a canal in the Hub. A letter to the Planning and Development Department (P&D) was only sent three days before this PAC meeting, despite a decision being made two years ago by the Departmental Accounts Committee (DAC).

During discussions, Fazal Qadir Mandukhel questioned why recovery actions weren't taken after the department admitted to overpayments to contractors for substandard materials used in a dam project.