SIBI, March 1: Chief Minister Jam Mir Mohammed Yousaf has pleaded for finalizing the National Finance Commission (NFC) award according to the requirements of the respective provinces.

Welcoming Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali at the local bodies convention on Saturday, he said it was a good omen for the province that for the first time the prime minister of the country belonged to Balochistan.

Referring to financial crisis in the province, he said that though district governments had been set up, the provincial government was not in a position to provide funds for development activities to them and were even facing difficulties in paying the salaries to its employees. He requested the prime minister for financial assistance to overcome the problems.

The provincial minister for local bodies, Maulana Hussain Ahmad Sharodi, in his welcome address requested Mr Jamali to allow trade with Iran and Afghanistan, so that the people of the border areas could earn livelihood in a respectable manner.

He demanded of the prime minister to allocate necessary funds for meeting shortage of ground water in the province, and appealed for setting up tax free zones around Quetta to overcome unemployment.

Other demands presented by the minister included induction of local people in Saindak project, special funds for uplift of Sibi, metalling of Sibi-Harnai-Kach road and running of goods trains between Rohri and Harnai for transporting agricultural produce.

He demanded of the federal government to construct a new road to by pass the ascending gradient on Lakpass for smooth plying of the traffic between Quetta and Karachi.

Earlier, Sibi Tehsil Nazim Shahid Baloch demanded restoration of Sibi district as it was before dissolution of Kachhi district. He demanded construction of Sibi-Harnai road and Tali Tangi dam, release of Rs100 million each for Loralai and Ziarat districts as announced by the president some time back.

Quetta City Nazim Mohammed Rahim Kakar, speaking on the occasion, complained about non-provision of development funds to the district government.

He said that 31 per cent of the funds allocated for district governments under Provincial Financial Commission Award were not being honoured and 27 per cent cut had been levied by the provincial government.

He complained that difficulties were being faced by the district governments in the absence of complete implementation of Local Government Ordinance, 2001.

He said that the district governments were forced to pay salaries to employees from the development funds creating financial difficulties.—APP