The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has yet to get full financial autonomy, as the authority has yet not been empowered to launch any development schemes without the approval of the Planning Commission and Finance Division, sources said on Thursday. Earlier, the interior minister had repeatedly announced that the CDA has been given an autonomous status to launch small or mega development projects by generating money from its own resources.
But despite availability of financial resources, the sources said, civic authority could face severe hardships in launching development schemes in future because it would need consent of the Planning Commission and Finance Division.
The federal government has constituted CDA Departmental Working Party (DWP) to discuss and get approval of the development projects. The senior joint secretaries of finance and interior ministries, besides Planning Commission, were given representation in the body, while the CDA chairman is heading this forum.
All the CDA board members have also been given equal representation in the DWP, He said that the DWP has the authority to take up any development project up to Rs 500 million provided it had been financed through CDA's own resources. Otherwise, the project will go to the Community Development Working Party (CDWP). If the CDA wants to launch mega projects above Rs 500 million in Islamabad it would be sent to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) for approval.
The CDA official said that the government has changed only the name of DDWP to CDA DWP, but its functions and powers are no different from the previous body.
Sources said that the CDA would also be unable to meet its target of launching mega development projects during the current fiscal, which include Zero Point fly-over and underpasses costing Rs 500 million. The official sources said that financial autonomy of the CDA in the present set up would not be able to provide any better service to the federal capital.
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