The Planning Commission (PC) has informed all ministries that the development projects may face resource constraints in the 2008-09 development budget, and has advised them to prioritise their schemes in line with the priorities set by the new government.
Sources told Business Recorder on Tuesday that the PC has instructed all ministries and the autonomous and semi-autonomous organisations, in writing, and instructed them to take immediate steps in this regard. The ministries have been asked to review all their ongoing and proposed projects, in consultation with the concerned ministers.
The ministries have also been asked to send their prioritised list to the PC so that, in case of resource constraint, priority projects are not missed out from 2008-09 Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP). The PC has also warned the ministries to furnish and send the prioritised list of projects as early as possible, otherwise the Commission would have to take unilateral decision on the issue, sources added.
The present government, according to sources, has set some priorities to give relief to the people. To meet these targets, the PC has started an exercise to prioritise the development projects which MUST be executed to help the government achieve its goals.
Sources said that the new government has an agenda of constructing small dams instead of going for building the big dams. Under this plan, the provincial governments have been directed to send their proposals on small dams.
The first 20 dams, costing Rs 2.8 billion, are planned to be constructed in Balochistan. The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) in its last meeting referred these projects to Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec). A total of 100 small dams will be constructed in the province.
The NWFP, according to sources, can also play an important role in helping the federal government to construct small dams. The province has several potential sites for big, medium and small dams in Chitral, Kohistan, Dir, Swat and Mansehra districts. These sites need feasibility studies to be conducted by the concerned authorities, sources said.
Apart from this, they said, the government is also keen to use local coal reserves for electricity generation. The Sindh government is required to go fast on furnishing projects for Thar coal development, they added.
The PC has issued instructions to the ministries after priorities committee completed its exercise of consolidating the development allocation. Some circles are of the view that the ministries have already briefed the PC and the Finance Division about their development agenda for the next fiscal year. The PC's instructions will force the ministries to do the same exercise once again, they added.