QUETTA: The Balochistan government has suspended many senior executive engineers and other officials for negligence while performing their duties on various development projects and warned that unnecessary delay in implementation of such schemes will not be tolerated.

This was disclosed by Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan Alyani while talking to reporters during his visit to under-construction development projects here on Wednesday, including Nawa Killi bypass, airport road, Quetta beautification and construction of Urak road site.

“Unnecessary delay in development projects will not be tolerated and those responsible for the delay would face legal action. The provincial government is keenly observing each and every development project and has suspended 36 XENs (executive engineers) and SDOs (sub-divisional officers) of different departments for negligence and other charges,” he said, adding: “We want all work done in the right direction and if someone thinks that he would save someone is living in fool’s paradise.”

Mr Alyani said the coalition government had made the anti-corruption department and the chief minister’s inspection team effective and removed 68 engineers. “We have taken these massive steps for good governance.”

He stressed the need for ensuring timely utilisation of funds allocated by the federal government under Public Sector Development Programme and directed the authorities concerned to come up with a monthly performance review report to determine the reasons behind underutilisation of the funds.

He called for enhancing coordination for early and effective completion of the projects. He said the coalition government had set aside Rs71 billion for development projects for which tenders would be floated within 15 days.

The chief minister said the government was constructing 5,000km roads in the province, while work on expansion of Sariab road would start over the next 15 days.

Published in Dawn, July 9th, 2020