Sindh government's Annual Development Programme (ADP) for 2013-14 will comprise mega projects of irrigation, water and sewerage, waste management and roads sectors. The provincial authorities said that the size of next year's ADP will be increased, which was Rs 231 billion during the outgoing year. The newly-elected government's maiden meeting on Budget and ADP 2013-14 was held at Chief Minister's House here on Thursday with Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah in the chair.
Advisor to Chief Minister on Finance Syed Murad Ali Shah, former caretaker minister for Finance and P&D Shakaib A. Qureshi, Additional Chief Secretary P&D Arif Ahmed Khan, Secretary Finance Suhail Rajput, and other high officials were present in the meeting.
Sources said that Shakaib A. Qureshi was especially invited by the Chief Minister to attend the meeting, as P&D department's team had done major work of ADP-2013-14 in Qureshi's leadership. Qureshi gave a briefing to the meeting over the work on ADP-2013-14 done during the caretaker setup, they added. The meeting approved many projects of ADP included by Qureshi as caretaker minister.
The exact size of ADP-2013-14 could not be finalised during the meeting as officials of finance department briefed the meeting that they were waiting for the receipts from federal government. The next meeting would be called by the Chief Minister after the confirmation of federal receipts and that meeting would finalise the exact outlay of the budget and ADP and the date of tabling in Sindh Assembly, they said.
According to the tentative summary of ADP 2013-14, a copy of which is available with Business Recorder, Sindh government may allocate over Rs 6,000 million for agriculture sector, around Rs 300 million for food, Rs 50 million for supply and prices, Rs 2500 million for animal husbandry (livestock) over Rs 100 million for fisheries, Rs 1100 million for wildlife, Rs 1400 for industries, Rs 2000 million for investment development, over Rs 500 million for mines and mineral development, Rs 220 million for police department, Rs 300 million for SGA&C department, Rs 40 million for finance department, Rs 800 million for Local government department and Rs 130 million for Katchi Abadies department.
Press Release adds: Chief Minister Sindh Syed Qaim Ali Shah presided over a high-level meeting here at CM House, and discussed next year's provincial budget and Annual Development Programme 2013-14. Advisor Finance Syed Murad Ali Shah apprised the Chief Minister Sindh through Powerpoint Presentations regarding the coming budget of2013-14 and related details complied by the department. The Additional Chief Secretary (P&D) and Secretary Finance also briefed the Chief Minister through various charts and graphs regarding the development projects and other related matters of the budget and ADP 2013-14.