World Bank agrees to provide Rs5,000 per acre subsidy to growers

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah in his meeting with the World Bank has decided to provide Rs5,000 per acre subsidy to the growers of seed and fertilizer for Rabi Crop.

The World Bank has agreed to provide subsidies to the growers holding up to 25 acres of land and the Chief Minister said that the growers holding land over 25 acres would be provided subsidies at the same rate.

This was agreed upon in a meeting between Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and the World Bank 13-member delegation led by its Country Director Najy Benhassine here at CM House on Wednesday. The CM was assisted by his cabinet members, Manzoor Wassan, Sharjeel Memon, Mukesh Chawla, Imtiaz Shaikh, Murtaza Wahab, Rasool Bux Chandio, Haris Gazdar, Chief Secretary Sohail Rajput, Chairman P&D Hassan Naqvi, Secretary Finance Sajid Jamal Abro and other concerned secretaries.

The World Bank delegation comprised Regional Director Guangzhe Chen, Sector Group Leader Abedalrazq Khalil, Practice Manager Shomik Raj Mehndiratta, Program Leader Teuta Kacaniku, Senior Energy Specialist Anjum Ahmad, Executive Assistant Waleed Anwar, Senior Transport Specialist Hasan Afzal Zaidi, Transport Specialist Muhammad Bilal Paracha, Disaster Risk Management Specialist Bilal Khalid, Senior Social Development Specialist Kamran Akbar, Lead Agriculture Specialist Olivier Durand, Senior Water Specialist Francois Onimus.

Subsidy on seed: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah told the World Bank country chief that his government has decided to provide subsidies on seed and fertilizer to the growers across the board at a rate of Rs5,000 per acre.

Shah said that the World Bank has already agreed to provide subsidies to the growers of land holding up to 25 acres. The growers holding over 25 acres would be given subsidies by the provincial government. “We have incentivized the Rabi crop, particularly of wheat so that next year’s wheat requirement could be met,” he said.

Yellow Line RBT: The Chief Minister talking about the route of the Yellow Line said that the consultants have told him about the structure condition of the existing Jam Sadiq Bridge. He added that the consultants have recommended full-scale rehabilitation that would cost around $5.3 million.

Murad said that the proposal for the construction of a new 4-lane, one-kilometer bridge, adjacent to the existing Jam Sadiq Bridge was being worked out. The tender documents have been forwarded to the World Bank for approval.

Based on the World Bank Meeting and Project Steering Committee’s directives, the following steps were taken:

Shah said that a detailed field survey was carried out on all the off-corridor routes, and our team reviewed Road & Drainage conditions on off-corridor routes in comparison with the local govt dept and DMC Korangi to avoid duplicity in the scope of works. He added that the reports have been reviewed and discussed with the consultants, and now detailed Design & Bidding Documents for off-corridor were under preparation.

Sindh Flood Emergency Rehabilitation Project (SFERP): Sindh CM Syed Murad Ali Shah said that the project Assignment Account has been opened and he has released Rs 5.77 billion as the first trench. This is an Rs101.35 million or Rs23,109.54 million project that would be financed by the world bank on a retroactive basis.

For the rehabilitation of Irrigation and Drainage Infrastructure damaged in Flood 2022, SFERP has been launched with the financial assistance of the World Bank. The works included in the project are as under;

The emergency works include plugging/closing and strengthening of breaches, relief cuts, and repair/replacement of pumps and motors at different pumping stations, and repair of small dams. The CM said that these works would be completed by November 30 to ensure water availability during the Rabi Season.

The emergent rehabilitation works include critical works that are severely damaged and associated with the safety of communities, cities, towns, and rehabilitation of infrastructure needed to be completed before the next monsoon.

The rehabilitation phase works include remodeling and rehabilitation of regulators, canals, drainage network, flood embankments, flood detention dams/weirs, and other irrigation infrastructure.

The chief minister said that all 36 emergent works have been awarded, 12 works have been completed, and 17 were in progress, while seven could not be started due to water draining from the cuts or submerged under water.

Shah said that the consultants have completed the survey work, detailed designing, and engineer estimates of the emergent rehabilitation works. He added that the procurement process has been initiated and it is expected that work would be started by November 15, 2022.

Health: The chief minister and the World Bank also discussed the repair and rehabilitation of health facilities such as dispensaries, and hospitals.

The CM said that there were around 1000 health facilities damaged partially or completely during the recent floods. The world bank has offered a $40 million loan for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the damaged health facilities.

The CM directed the P&D dept to submit the approved documents to the bank so that the project could be started.

Housing project: The World Bank has already pledged $500 million or Rs110 billion for the reconstruction of the houses damaged during heavy rains/floods. The chief minister and the World Bank country chief agreed to appoint a consultant so that the project could be started.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022