Provinces refuse to accept development projects

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has transferred development projects worth hundreds of billions of rupees to the provinces without taking them into confidence. The provincial governments have refused to accept the responsibility for running these projects on account of limited administrative capabilities and have asked the Centre to review its decision.

A senior official of the Sindh government confirmed that the projects have been transferred to the provinces. He disclosed that the Chief Minister of Sindh, Syed Qaim Ali Shah, has written a letter to Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani expressing reservations over the decision of the federal government.

The chief minister, in the letter, highlighted that in the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award it was decided that the projects would be handed over to the provinces along with their budgets. Currently, the projects have been given to the provinces without the budget required to run them which would result in immense financial pressure on the provincial governments.

The chief minister went on to say that even if the projects are transferred along with the required finances, it would be difficult to start working on them immediately. In the letter, he explained that the provinces did not have the required administrative setup to run the projects and such an extensive infrastructure could not be developed in two or three weeks.

Shah requested the premier to transfer the projects according to the pattern decided in the NFC award. He said that the projects should be transferred gradually and in sequence so that the development process is not disturbed.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 25^th, 2010.