MANSHERA: Women not given share in Rs126m Mansehra budget
By Musaddiq Ali
MANSEHRA, July 20: A Rs126m tax-free budget of the Mansehra tehsil council for the year 2004-2005 was approved immediately after its presentation in the budget session of the council held in Mansehra Press Club Hall, here on Tuesday.
All the women members of the council protested for not being given an equal share in the funds while Naib Nazim Bilal Khan also did not vote in favour of the approval of the budget.
The budget session was presided over by the convener Ejaz Akhtar Khan and tehsil nazim Nawabzada Mohammad Farooq Khan delivered the budget speech. When woman member Gulshan Bibi stood up to speak, the convener adjourned the session.
Tehsil nazim said that it was a Rs 126,585,100 tax free budget and the estimated income of the council for the year 2004-2005 was Rs 107,585,100. The women members who had strongly protested for not being allocated equal funds for their own schemes, later went to the Mansehra Press Club to speak about their grievances at a press conference.
They were however persuaded by some nazims to talk with the tehsil nazim instead. They called off their protest after the tehsil nazim assured them equal treatment.
He said that after inclusion of the CCB funds which could not be utilised during the year 2003-2004, the grant extended by the NWFP chief minister for the repair of the fire brigade and the funds allocated for the ongoing schemes, the total income estimate of the council comes to Rs 126,585,100.
He said that the total estimated expenditure of the council is Rs 122,649,379. He said that Rs 22,001,600 have been allocated for development projects and Rs 18,323,747 have been allocated for the CCBs.
Mohammad Farooq Khan said that the council for generating its income has started work on the construction of Kashmir plaza, Women's plaza, shops on the roof top of the general bus stand and fibre glass cabins at the general bus stand at an estimated cost of Rs 24,000,000.
In this way the total estimated expenditure of the council comes to Rs 69,113,347, he added. He said that most of the council's budget is utilised on providing civic amenities to the residents.
He said that Rs 11,136,000 is consumed on water supply, Rs 7,950,300 is consumed on sanitation and Rs 4,524,000 is consumed on street lights. At the end of the budget speech, the council member Attiqur Rehman Jehangiri congratulated the tehsil nazim and his team for presenting a tax free budget and suggested that budget be approved in the ongoing session although July 22 was fixed for debate on budget.
