LAHORE, April 17: The Lahore High Court asked the Punjab chief secretary on Wednesday to look into the administrative viability and economic feasibility of the new districts created in the province.

Petitioner-lawyer MD Tahir said the new districts were white elephants. They were created for political considerations. It was difficult to maintain them as the initial and recurring expenditure was much higher than any additional revenue generated by them for the public exchequer.

He particularly mentioned the district of Hafizabad, which cost the exchequer about Rs1.25 billion and was earning Rs200 million only. A loss of Rs17.85 billion was being incurred by the exchequer on account of the 17 newly-created districts, the lawyer said.

Additional Advocate-General Hanif Khatana agreed with the petitioner by and large and cited the example of his own district, Narowal. But, he said, since the new districts were already functional, it would not be advisable to abolish them.

Justice Chaudhry Ijaz Ahmad, who heard the petition, directed that a copy of the petition be sent to the chief secretary for his consideration.