October 25, 2001	Thursday	Shaba'an 7, 1422

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FAISALABAD, Oct 24: The district Nazim presented on Wednesday Rs541 million budget for district council for 2001-02 amid rumpus.

The special session was convened at the auditorium of the Punjab Medical College. However, immediately after recitation from the holy Quran, dozens of members stood up and objected to the conducting of the budget session. They complained that they were neither given a copy of the budget nor they were taken into confidence while preparing budget proposals.

Naib Nazim Afzal Sahi assured them that every member would be given opportunity to speak on the budget proposals. On his assurance, clam was restored to the House and Nazim Zahid Nazir started budget speech.

The Nazim said no new tax has been imposed in the budget. Over Rs406 million for the annual development programme would be provided by the provincial government while over Rs135 million would be spent from the local resources.

Giving break-up of the funds given by the government, he said Rs256 million have been reserved for the ongoing schemes while Rs150 million would be spent on new schemes, Rs134 million would be spent on urban development, Rs82 million on water supply schemes under social action plan, Rs119 million on secondary education, Rs5.6 million on constructing farm to market roads, Rs5 million on repair of roads and bridges, Rs44 million on higher education and Rs5 million on elementary education.

Out of the district government funds, he said, Rs76 million would be spent on completion of 230 ongoing schemes and Rs58 million on new schemes, Rs5 million on construction of classrooms and lecture theatres in the Government College for Women, Karkhana Bazaar, Rs1.7 million on purchase of 25 computers for the Zila Council Computer Centre and Rs4.6 million for laying sewerage lines in Azimabad.

Under the proposed new schemes, over Rs15 million would be spent on the completion of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Hall.

Mr Nazir said under the Local Government Ordinance, tehsil union councils have been empowered to collect six taxes worth Rs180 million while the district government could collect only two taxes to the tune of Rs200 million.

He said despite constraints, the district government was laying special emphasis on education, particularly on computer education.

The session was adjourned for Thursday (today) for discussion on budget proposals.

RECOVERY OF DUES: District coordination officers and zila Nazims across the province have been directed to accelerate the pace of recovery of dues from defaulters of all departments.

Sources told this correspondent here on Wednesday that zila and tehsil governments would pass their annual budgets without enhancing their developmental and non-developmental expenditures.

All heads of departments, they said, were asked to send final lists of defaulters who had not paid their dues for the last one decade.