ISLAMABAD: The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) on Monday cleared a total of 15 development projects involving a total cost of Rs269 billion.

At a meeting presided over by Deputy Chairman Planning Comm­ission Mohammad Jehanzeb Khan, the CDWP itself approved eight projects with cumulative estimated cost of Rs36bn and referred for approval to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) seven other projects having a total cost of Rs233bn.

Projects related to environment, physical planning, transport & communications, water resources and education were presented in the meeting.

The CDWP approved a project namely Developing Revenue Linkage between Marmara Research Centre, Turkey and Pakistan Metrological Department worth Rs168.308m while the Sindh Resilience project worth Rs15.31bn was referred to Ecnec.

Two projects related to physical planning were also presented to the meeting. The Solid Waste Emergency and Efficiency project worth Rs17.66bn was referred to the Ecnec. The proposed project will finance intervention that will be implemented over two phases.

In the immediate emergency response phase, activities are targeted to mitigate high flooding risks linked to the 2020 monsoon and caused by accumulation of solid waste and sludge in the city. The second project Contraction of New Building for Supreme Court Branch Registry at Karachi Registry Saddar worth Rs4.4bn was approved by the CDWP.

The meeting also took up two projects related to transport and communications sector. Widening and carpeting Bonni-Buzund-Torkhow road (28km) District Chitral project worth Rs1.22bn was approved by the CDWP.

Second project namely Construction/Upgradation of Dirgi Shahbozai to Tonusa Sharif Road worth Rs8.944bn was also approved by the CDWP.Third project namely Construction of 100 small dams in Balochistan Package-III worth Rs8.88bn was referred to Ecnec as the Ministry of Water Resources also presented a position paper titled “Construction of 100 Small Dams in Balochistan” worth Rs13.5bn for integrated infrastructure support. The objective of the two project is to harness flood flows for direct irrigation, ground water recharge, agriculture development and poverty alleviation through environmentally acceptable and sustainable projects.

The meeting also also referred two position papers related to transport and communications to Ecnec. These included Construction of Gwadar-Ratodero Road Project M-8 worth Rs38.026bn and Upgradation widening and construction of Surab Hoshab Road N-85 worth Rs28.82bn.

Three projects related to water resources were also presented to the meeting. First project titled Flood Protection Sector worth Rs95.98bn and Sindh Resilience Project for Strengthening Flood Embankments & Construction of Small Dams worth Rs23.7bn were also referred to the Ecnec.

Three education projects including establishment of National Curriculum Council Secretariat worth Rs425.1m, establishment and Operation of Basic Education Community Schools in the Country worth Rs7.7bn and Improving Human Development Indicators in Pakistan with focus on MDGs relating to Education and six EFA goals worth Rs4.276bn were approved by CDWP.

Published in Dawn, October 13th, 2020