KARACHI, March 10: Sindh Chief Secretary Fazlur Rehman has directed all the provincial secretaries and DCOs to spare no effort in ensuring timely completion of ongoing uplift schemes and promote departmental liaison to achieve the targets.

He was addressing the Secretaries Committee at his office here on Saturday. In a briefing on the occasion, Additional Chief Secretary Development Ghulam Sarwar Khehro told that Rs32 billion - Rs24 billion at the provincial and 8 billion at the district level - was allocated for ongoing uplift schemes of provincial departments and districts including ADP schemes for 2006-07.

He pointed out that Rs15 billion was released for provincial schemes and Rs5 billion for district schemes, out of which Rs7 billion and Rs3 billion was spent respectively during the last 8 months.

The meeting was also briefed about water courses improvement programme and chief secretary paid compliments to the agriculture department and DCOs for their good performance.

The chief secretary exhorted the officials to pursue an effective line of action for having regular funding for road sector development, irrigation schemes and water supply and drainage projects.

In the meeting a committee, headed by Secretary Planning and Development Mohammed Hashim Leghari was set up which will work for adjustment of those employees in districts who belonged to defunct or merged departments under devolution.

It was decided that DCOs and EDOs revenue would monitor the issuance of pass books for providing loans to farmers by the Agriculture Development Bank.

The meeting was informed that a total of four polio cases were reported from all over the country out of which three were reported from Sindh and one from the NWFP. The chief secretary directed that all possible anti-polio measures be taken.

The DCOs were directed to ensure lining of at least two water courses in each district every week. They were also directed to ensure payment of HESCO dues.—APP