KARACHI, Sept 16: The Chief Minister, Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim, presided over a meeting on Thursday to review the Rs26,589.724 million Thar package that contains 214 short-, medium- and long-term development schemes of water supply, drainage, education, electricity, agriculture, communication and transport.

The Additional Chief Secretary, Planning and Development, Ghulam Sarwar Kherro, informed that there were seven short-term and 16 medium-term water supply schemes worth Rs3,160.685 million, and one short-term and three medium-term schemes costing Rs48.125 million in the drainage sector.

In the education sector, two short-term and six medium-term schemes worth Rs761.30 million had been proposed. Two schemes, one each of short- and medium-term durations, costing Rs61.985 million had been proposed in the manpower sector.

For the agriculture sector, Rs815.132 million worth of schemes, four each of short- and medium-term periods, and three long-term ones had been proposed. The number of schemes in the road sector was 62 short-term ones - 46 of medium-term, and 144 of long-term period - at a total cost of Rs19,829.011 million.

Other schemes regarding mines and mineral development including the construction of an air strip would cost Rs355 million. There are nine health schemes worth Rs420 million, eight schemes in the water and power sector worth Rs1,205 million and two schemes in the industrial sector costing Rs133.488 million.

The chief minister decided to constitute a committee headed by the Minister for Mines and Mineral Development, Irfan Marwat, to review the schemes and formulate recommendations so that the package could be presented for approval in a meeting in the near future.

Those who attended the meeting included Chief Secretary Muhammad Aslam Sanjrani, ACS, Local Government Muhammad Salim Khan, Secretary, Mines and Mineral Development Abdul Hameed Akhund, Secretary, Works and others. -PPI