HYDERABAD, July 7: District Nazim Dr Makhdoom Rafiquzzaman on Wednesday approved a Rs898.091 million budget of the Hyderabad Development Authority for 2004-05. The budget includes non-development expenditure of Rs98.877 million.

An amount of Rs201.669 million has been earmarked in the budget for different development works which will be funded by the Sindh government. A sum of Rs260.292 million has been allocated for self-finance housing scheme and Rs436.130 million for the Water and Sanitation Agency for operation and maintenance of the water supply system and sewerage.

Development schemes to be funded by the Sindh government include a Rs130.066 million greater Hyderabad sewerage project, which will be partially funded by the Islamic Development Bank.

A fund of Rs7.5 million has been earmarked for water supply schemes of peripheral areas of Hyderabad, Rs15.25 million for channelization of sewerage of the old powerhouse drain to the proposed small treatment plant near the Zeal Pak Cement Factory and R20.066 million for construction of an effluent channel, stage-III, for disposing effluent into the River Indus.

An amount of Rs18.184 million has been fixed for diversion of sewerage discharge from Phulelli to the northern treatment plant, Rs6 million for a city drainage, stage-IV, under the Tamir-i-Sindh programme, Rs4.303 million for clearance of liabilities of water supply and sewerage and Rs0.3 million for documentation of new schemes.

COUNCILLORS: Ten councillors of the Qasimabad union council-I, who have formed an action committee to accelerate the pace of development works in the union council, on Wednesday held a protest demonstration outside the press club here against non-cooperation of the union council nazim and the taluka council nazim.