Central Development Working Party (CDWP) has approved as many as 24 projects valued at Rs 184.8 billion, out of which 10 projects worth Rs 169.6 billion were referred to the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC). The CDWP also approved one position paper with a cost of Rs 709 million. The CDWP met with Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Sartaj Aziz in the chair here at Planning Commission. The meeting was also attended by the senior officials form federal and provincial governments as well as autonomous bodies.
The projects presented for approval include energy, transport & communication, water resources, physical planning & housing, science & technology, governance, health and mass media.
In energy sector, the CDWP recommended a project on evacuation of power from Suki Kinari, Kohala & Mahl Hydro Power Project in Northern Areas at cost of Rs 73.6 billion to ECNEC. The main objective of the project is construction of 500kV transmission network to provide interconnection facilities for evacuation of power from the said Hydro Power Plants. Moreover, a project of feasibility study on developing mechanism for tariff based bidding of hydropower projects, review of feasibility studies for hydropower projects through local and foreign experts and capacity building of PPIB employees was approved with a cost of Rs 64.3 million. The project will help enhance the capacity of PPIB.
In transport and communication sector, the CDWP approved 12 projects in transport & communication out of which 6 were referred to ECNEC. The projects include up-gradation/ renovation of Bahawalpur, Raiwaind, Gujranwala, Karachi, Peshawar, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Lahore and Rawalpindi railway stations (Rs 1.46 billion), replacement of old and obsolete signal gear from Lodhran-Multan-Khanewal-Shahdara Bagh Main Line section of Pakistan Railways (Rs 18.6 billion), improvement & widening of Chitral-Booni-Mastuj-Shandur Road (Rs 19.1 billion), construction/rehabilitation of four bridges (Muzhgole Bridge, Osaik Bridge, Pokel Bridge and repairing of Churan Bridge) with approach road and allied components (Rs 544.6 million), construction of Ziarat Mor-Kach-Harnai Road and construction of Harnai Sanjavi Road (Rs 10.8 billion), construction of six-lane overhead bridge at Imamia Colony Railway Crossing Shahdara (Rs 2.1 billion), purchase of road clearance/earth moving machinery for prompt emergency response in AJK (Rs 500 million), extension/up-gradation of Bannu Airport for A-320/B-737 Aircraft Operations (Rs 715 million), improvement of security at Karachi International Airport, Multan Airport and Islamabad Airport (Rs 2.2 billion), land acquisition for Rawalpindi-Kahuta Road (Rs 5.3 billion), Dualization of Rawalpindi-Kahuta Road (Rs 10.1 billion). Lastly, construction of northern bypass of Dera Ghazi Khan was recommended to ECNEC (Rs 5.6 billion).
About physical planning & housing, the CDWP approved construction of Model Custom House at Gwadar at a cost of Rs 1.5 billion. In water resource, the CDWP approved feasibility study, detailed engineering design & preparation of tender documents of Murunj Dam Project at a cost of Rs 371.7 million and recommended Darawat Dam Project with a cost of Rs 11.8 billion to ECNEC.
About science & technology sector, two projects including one position paper were approved with the total cost of Rs 3.3 billion. The position paper tends on subsidy to scholars aboard under culture exchange program with a cost of Rs 709 million. The project for development of National University of Medical Sciences, Islamabad, was also approved with a cost of Rs 2.6 billion.
About governance, the CDWP recommended federal program under Access to Justice Program worth Rs 6.4 billion to ECNEC. About health sector, the CDWP approved three projects out of which one was referred to ECNEC. The projects include establishment of a current GMP complaint sera processing laboratory for capacity enhancement, biological production division, NIH Islamabad worth Rs 751.1 million. A project titled establishment of centre for Neurosciences at PIMS, Islamabad, was referred to ECNEC worth Rs 7.4 billion. In addition, civil works for cancer hospital Islamabad was approved with a cost of Rs 1.99 billion.
The CDWP approved two projects in mass media sector which include installation of 100KW medium wave digital transmitter at Mirpur for countering cross-border propaganda costing Rs 143.8 million and rehabilitation of medium wave services for Muzaffarabad (AJK) with a cost of Rs 160.6 million.