KARACHI - The Sindh government has decided to sort out the important uplift schemes under Annual Development Programme (ADP) of current fiscal year 2012-13, so that funds could be released on priority basis for them.
At a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah here at CM Secretariat on Friday, the meeting reviewed the uplift schemes during first quarter of the current fiscal year. It was decided that the government would prioritise release of the funds for development schemes, so that the outcome of the development spending could be made visible through completing a number of schemes in last year of the preset government.
The meeting decided that Planning and Development and Finance departments would jointly sort out the ongoing schemes of 10 provincial departments including education, health, agriculture, irrigation, which are more important and make difference in the lives of the peoples after completion. According to the officials present in the meeting, after prioritising important development schemes, the government would release more funds for them, so that they could be completed in the last year of the government.
The planning and development and finance departments will present their recommendations in another meeting to be held with Qaim Ali Shah in the chair after Eid, in which government will decide to release funds for other departments. The meeting was informed that out of total allocation of Rs131 billion for ADP of provincial government, a sum of Rs15 billion has been released in first quarter of current fiscal year 2012-13 by the finance department.
According to the CM Secretariat, Qaim Ali Shah directed the all provincial secretaries of departments to prioritise the ongoing and new uplift schemes in their departments. Qaim opined that though all the uplift schemes have their importance but some of them are required to be completed on urgent basis to provide the benefit of them to the people.
Shah further said that the uplift schemes of the education and health departments are more important, so that government will release funds on priority basis with increased ratio. Sindh Finance Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, Chief Secretary Raja Muhammad Abbas, Finance Secretary Kamran Naveed Baloch, Special Secretary of Planning and Development Department Dr Noorul Haq and other officials of the Sindh government attended the meeting.
During his recent visit to Karachi, President Zardari had directed the Sindh government to prioritise the development schemes in this fiscal year. The President also underlined the need to give the benefit of the uplift schemes to the people, which could be made base for campaign of next general elections approaching some time in next year.