ISLAMABAD: The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) on Monday gave go-ahead to two projects worth around Rs21.164 billion. Planning Commission deputy chairman Mohammad Jehanzeb Khan presided over the CDWP meeting and cleared one development project with a cumulative estimated cost of Rs0.634 billion and recommended one project worth Rs20.53 billion to the executive committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) for further consideration.

Secretary Planning Hamed Yaqoob Sheikh, senior officials from the Planning Commission and federal ministries/divisions also participated in the meeting, while representatives from the provincial governments participated through video conference.

Projects related to health and water resources were presented in the meeting. A project related to health, presented in the meeting titled ‘Social Health Protection Phase-II’ worth Rs634 million was approved by the CDWP. The project envisages social health protection for the district of Gilgit-Baltistan including medicines, general surgery, orthopedics, gynae and obstetrics, pediatric, ophthalmology, and ENT with coverage up to Rs 25,000 per member of the beneficiary household per year.

A project related to water resources presented in the meeting titled ‘Rainee Canal Project (Phase-I)’ worth Rs 20,533.836 million referred to ECNEC for further consideration. The project envisages construction of 174 km long canal having 609 km long distribution system to irrigate a total cultural able command area of 412,400 acres in the districts of Kashmore, Ghotki, Sukkur, and Khairpur. The CDWP directed MoWR to hand over the project to Sindh government along with agreed O&M cost.

The Sindh govt was directed to ensure command area development. The CDWP cleared three Concept Clearance proposals titled ‘Provision of Equipment & Personnel Training Provision to Airport Security Forces and Pakistan Civil Aviation Industry Corporation of China International China’ worth Rs3,272.509 million, second concept clearance titled ‘Rehabilitation/ Upgrade of Rawal Lake Treatment Plan, Old Transmission Pipe and Water Testing Laboratory including Equipment’ worth Rs3,921.47 million and the third concept clearance titled ‘National Deployment and Vaccination Plan for Covid-19 Vaccine 2021 Pakistan Preparedness and Response Plan for Covid -19’ worth $1,028.74 approved by the CDWP.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021