March 22, 2003	Saturday	Muharram 18, 1424

PESHAWAR, March 21: NWFP has not been released Rs2 billion from its net hydel profit share for the financial year 2002-03 despite the assurance given by Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Jamali, according to official sources.

In his visit to Peshawar on March 8, the prime minister had promised the NWFP government to release Rs2bn from the net hydel profit share of the province.

However, assurance by the prime minister has not yet been fulfilled as the total amount released to the province against its net hydel profit share during the current financial year still stands at Rs1 billion — and not Rs3 billion as has recently been claimed by NWFP Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani.

During a meeting with a group of journalists here on March 15, the chief minister said the province had received Rs3 billion from its Rs6 billion capped share amount of net hydel profit.

“This is not true,” said a well-placed official of the provincial government when contacted by Dawn.

Officials holding important assignments rejected the impression that the province had been released Rs2 billion more against its share of net hydel profit.

“There is even no signal from the federal government or Wapda with regards to the disbursement of net hydel profit funds to the province in fulfilment of the prime minister’s promise,” said the sources on the condition of anonymity.

The NWFP government, said the sources, made an elaborate case before the prime minister apprising him of the negative impact of the non-payment of net hydel profit on the provincial kitty and development works.

Senior government functionaries said the province’s shortfall under its revenue receipts’ head of net hydel profit stood at Rs3.5 billion as on March 15, 2003, the province should have received Rs4.5bn out of total Rs6bn capped share amount for the 2002-03 financial year. The recently sent requests to Wapda for starting disbursement of net hydel profit to NWFP remained unheard.

“Though Wapda has committed to pay the capped share amount in full (Rs6bn) by the close of the current financial year, it did not positively respond to the request for early disbursement,” said a senior government functionary.

Wapda had taken the stand that it would disburse more funds to the province after recovering its multi-billion rupees arrears from the public sector entities and electricity consumers of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. Wapda has a claim to recover Rs33bn from the public sector defaulting entities and Fata consumers.