PESHAWAR, Jan 3: Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani has issued directives to release Rs1 billion for expediting work on on-going schemes under the Annual Development Programme throughout the province.

He was presiding over a high-level meeting at the Frontier House, Peshawar, on Wednesday.

The meeting underscored swiftness on uplift schemes, high quality of raw material, the proposed targets and progress made so far. A number of decisions, including provision of resources for the ongoing schemes and completion of uplift schemes in the stipulated period to derive desired ends were made in this regard.

The chief secretary, additional chief secretary and provincial secretaries of the finance, works and services, and irrigation and planning departments were also present in the meeting.

Mr Durrani said there should be no delay in the uplift schemes and uplift process must continue if resources were available.

“Delay in the development schemes causes doubts and distrust among the masses,” he said.

He said that work on the uplift schemes must be expedited keeping in view the requirements and intended priorities so that rise in the expenditures on schemes may be done away with.

He said: “If possible, some of the schemes must be completed before June,” and added that the targets of schemes more than 1 year old must be achieved.

He said there should be no obstruction in the reconstruction of social services’ institutions.

He directed the additional chief secretary to set the priorities of the schemes initiated by the Irrigation Department and Frontier Highways Authority and release funds for this purpose.

The chief minister said the schemes of water supply, education, healthcare and other social services’ institutions must be given priority.

He directed the Irrigation Department to complete flood protection schemes by March “otherwise, we will have to face the disaster of floods”.

He assured provision of funds would not be a stumbling block.

The chief minister urged assembly members to set their uplift goals keeping in view their uplift funds under the Tameer-i-Sarhad Programme.

He went on to say that the provincial government had initiated a uniform uplift process and there would be no bias or irregularities in it.