PESHAWAR, July 1: NWFP’s proposed new development schemes under the federally-funded Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for 2002-03 were not paid much heed, according to official sources.

The provincial government had proposed several new schemes - pertaining to social sector — for execution through federal funds, but very few of them, said the sources, were included in the 2002-03 financial year’s PSDP.

The province had asked for executing, at least, three new schemes pertaining to education sector, seven new schemes of the health sector, four new schemes of the social welfare and women development sector whereas 45 schemes of the sports, culture, tourism and youth affairs had been submitted for inclusion in PSDP.

Against that the federal government had included only one new scheme of education sector — the establishment of Col Sher Khan Cadet College at Swabi at an estimated cost of Rs300 m. In the case of the other sub-sectors of the social sector, not much attention was paid to the NWFP government’s requests by the federal government, according to sources.

“PSDP is evident of the fact that NWFP would get minimal during the 2002-03 under the PSDP as far as social sector is concerned,” said a senior government functionary on request of anonymity.

Some of the ignored schemes were of greater utility for the provincial government, said the sources.

Whereas in the case of public sector development other than social sector, except for power and mineral sectors no new important project has been planned to be executed under the PSDP for 2002-03.

A sum of Rs300 m has been specified under the PSDP to start work on the execution of Kurram-Tangi dam, an important water storage programme to be carried out by the federal government at an estimated cost of Rs9.25 bn in the southern parts of the Frontier province.

Similarly, in line with President Gen Pervez Musharraf’s announced decision, a sum of Rs700 m has been projected to start execution of Lowari tunnel - meant to ensure round the year road linkage between the remotely situated Chitral district of NWFP and the rest of the country. The estimated cost of the project has been evaluated to be Rs15 bn.