PESHAWAR, Jan 7: Following the provincial government's instructions of first completing the ongoing development schemes, the district governments are unable to launch new schemes.

"There are several district governments not able to launch new schemes, since their coming into being due to restrictions imposed by the provincial government," said a senior development planner told Dawn on Wednesday.

The local governments, after their establishment in Aug 2001, were directed by the last military-backed provincial government to first complete their ongoing works and then launch new schemes.

Sources said that the policy was meant to make the newly established entities to focus on the development initiatives already being pursued in various parts of the province.

In addition to it the move was meant to control the province's throw-forward liability which stood close to Rs50 billion in accordance with the originally set annual development programme for the 2003-04 financial year, maintained an officer.

The previous provincial government's policy was retained by the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal. "In some of the cases, the district governments would need another three years to complete the ongoing schemes thus they would not be able to undertake any new development work in their specified time of governance," said the officer.

In certain cases, he said, district government's ongoing schemes' portfolio was large to an extent that they would not be having extra funds to launch new schemes for five to six years.

A district coordination officer, seeking anonymity, said the idea of establishing the citizen community board (CCB), in all the districts under section 98 of the NWFP Local Government Ordinance, 2001, had further marginalized the scope of the district governments of initiating new development schemes.

As per the ordinance, the district governments are required to allocate 25 per cent of the total amount put at their disposal for development purposes in a year to the citizen community board to undertake schemes meant to energise the community for development and improvement in service delivery.

"The idea of establishing the citizen community board is good, but for their proper use the district governments need to have ample resources to put at their disposal side by side providing ample funds to their union councils and town councils to undertake schemes of great significance to them," said the District Coordination Officer.

Official sources in the Peshawar district government said that the district would get around Rs71 million, during the current financial year, to carry out development works.

If the amount would be distributed among the 91 union councils - falling under the jurisdiction of Peshawar district government - on the basis of formula laid down under the Provincial Finance Commission (PFC) award for the 2003-04 financial year then each of them would get meagre amount, not sufficient to undertake any vital project.

"Each of the union councils has been calculated to get Rs400,000 if this amount is distributed among them on the basis of PFC formula which asks for providing 25 per cent of the development funds to the CCBs," the officer said and added: "The idea is good, but it should only be undertaken when the districts have sufficient resources to finance union councils' schemes."