QUETTA, July 1: The senior minister of Balochistan, Maulana Abdul Wasay, on Thursday said that the provincial government had allocated Rs12.87 billion for 1,349 development schemes to be carried out during the year 2004-05.

Addressing a press briefing on the Public Sector Development Programme 2004-05, he said that the current year's allocation was 25 per cent more than the funds earmarked for the last year's PSDP.

"We have allocated 29 per cent of our total budget to the development sector," Maulana Wasay said, adding that during the financial year 2003-04 Rs9.30 billion had been allocated for the purpose.

He said 848 new projects would be started in addition to the 501 ongoing schemes. He said that the road sector had been given priority in the new PSDP, adding that Rs4.51 billion would be spent for carrying out 402 schemes in this sector.

The education sector, he said, had been given second priority as it would be given Rs1.83 billion to execute its 136 plans. Similarly, he said, Rs1.7 billion and Rs800 million had been allocated for the irrigation and health sectors, respectively.

The number of schemes for these sectors was 201 and 77, respectively, he added. He said that Rs750 million had been allocated for 242 schemes of water supply and Rs500 million had been earmarked for sanitation, renovation of drains, installation of street lights in Quetta and construction of pavements. Maulana Wasay, who also holds the portfolio of planning and development, rejected opposition's criticism of the budgetary allocations.