KARACHI, Sept 11: The Sindh government has frozen bank accounts of industrial management companies formed for development of infrastructure in four major industrial estates in Karachi that include Korangi, Landhi, F B Area and North Karachi.

Sources in the Sindh government told Dawn on Wednesday that the accounts of four management companies set up by the previous regime as public-private partnership firms were frozen till further orders.

These firms were earlier granted Rs250 million each for development of infrastructure in these estates. These companies have been advised to stop expenditure from the accounts till a new arrangement is made.

Meanwhile, the Sindh government has constituted Provincial Public Enterprise Working Group (PEWG) for evolving a policy for improving efficiency in all public enterprises in the province.

The group, headed by the Sindh chief secretary, includes representatives from KITE, NITE, LITE, and FITE, apart from officials from the ministries of industry, finance and agriculture. The group has replaced the Sindh Infrastructure Development Board.The PEWG will be responsible for evolving policy for improving efficiency in public enterprises in the province and carry out financial performance review of public sector corporations.

It will identify options to privatise or introduce private management to a number of public sector corporations, including Sindh Small Industrial Estate Corporation, Sindh Industrial Trading Estate, Sindh Seed Corporation and Sindh Agricultural Market Committees.

The group will develop private management plans for these corporations, incorporating measures to address adjustment costs, particularly the employees’ welfare issues, etc.

Meanwhile, ministry of industry sources said that the management companies have been directed to stop work on development projects because the government wanted to ensure transparency in spending of huge government funds.

The other reason to withhold the money is delay in grant of one billion rupees committed by the federal government for development of infrastructure in industrial estates.

Under the rules, matching grants cannot be used before the actual grant is released by the federal government.

Sources further said that the main reason for a freeze on work by the four management companies is non-fulfillment of the benchmark set by the Asian Development Bank for granting a loan for infrastructure development in the province.

The bank is not satisfied with the working of the public-private partnership companies set up in the four industrial estates.

Meanwhile, Idrees Gigi, CEO of Federal B Area (FITE) management company told Dawn that he had been asked by the Sindh chief secretary to freeze accounts of the management company, which it had placed in three Islamic banks accounts.

He said that the company had submitted PC-1 for three projects, namely lighting in the area (Rs10.25 million), a waste management project (Rs10.75 million), fire-fighting arrangement (Rs25 million) and a project to enhance security in the area (Rs50 million).

He said the amount was sanctioned by the former president Musharraf to the management companies so that the work could be carried out without interference from bureaucracy.

However, the company faced a lot of interference from the government, which has finally frozen the account.