QUETTA, June 20: The Balochistan government has violated the orders of its own cabinet by deciding to disband the Quetta Development Authority.

According to the devolution plan, the Quetta Development Authority is being disbanded on June 30, the last day of the fiscal year. It is being merged with the city government as per the devolution plan prepared by the transitional team and government officials.

It was decided by the provincial cabinet that two important city institutions - the Quetta Development Authority (QDA) and the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) - should not be disbanded under the devolution plan and its basic infrastructure be retained for carrying out mega projects in the provincial capital.

Accordingly, both, the QDA and WASA, are already under the city government’s control. Quetta Nazim is chairman of the governing body retaining all administrative powers.

The WASA will be retained, but the QDA is being dismantled and dispersed and formally merged with the city government, Quetta.

The dismantling of the infrastructure of the QDA will have a disastrous effect on the institutional growth. It was supposed to undertake preparation of master plans, projects worth billions of rupees, improve civic services, visualize new projects, and prepare long-term plans.

If the QDA is disbanded and its administrative machinery dismantled, then the petty functionaries and engineers with narrow vision of the Town Nazim will take over the projects worth billions.

The QDA is the executive agency of many projects. Who will replace it? In any case, the government will have to hand over vital projects to some other agency for execution. It is beyond the capabilities of the Town Nazim or the petty functionaries manning the town administration in Quetta.

At present, a large bus and truck terminal, big road projects, bridges, new housing schemes, and access roads are being constructed by the QDA.

It was for these reasons the cabinet decided to retain the WASA and QDA.

The WASA is the executive agency of the prestigious Greater Quetta Water Supply and Drainage Project approved by the president. The federal budget made an anticipatory allocation of Rs300 million for the project.

The Central Development Working Party is scheduled to meet on June 24, to discuss the project before sending it to the ECNEC for approval. The project will cost Rs6.5 billion.

A neighbourly Muslim country reportedly has pledged to finance the project by providing soft loan.