PESHAWAR, Oct 23: Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) has, apparently, linked payment of NWFP’s net hydel profit share for the current financial year with the recovery of the arrears from the public sector and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) consumers.
In response to NWFP government’s recently sent communiques asking Wapda to release the province’s net hydel profit share for the current financial year, the Authority has told the provincial government that disbursement of funds against the net hydel profit share would be commenced shortly after Wapda started receiving dues payable by the public sector entities and Fata’s consumers.
“Wapda’s receivables against public sector have increased to Rs27.5bn as on August 31, 2002 including Rs18.3bn for Fata and NWFP government departments,” said a document containing Wapda’s stand on the issue.
Some other sources also confirmed that “Wapda has refused to start early disbursement of net profit share to the province after Fata’s electricity consumers and provincial and federal public sector entities start paying Wapda dues.”
The provincial government had recently moved Wapda to release funds to it against its net hydel profit share for the current financial year after its shortfall under this ‘vital’ revenue head has started increasing with every passing month. Wapda, according to the sources, has released nothing to NWFP under the said head so far during the current financial year, making it to undergo financial complications.
In a statement recently faxed to Dawn—in response to one of its stories pertaining to NWFP-Wapda stand-off on the issue— Wapda said although the province would be released Rs6bn during the current financial year in accordance with its share determined by the federal government, NWFP’s original share for the current financial year comes to Rs3.724bn.
Wapda has claimed that the Rs3.724bn share has been calculated on the basis of formula determined by the AGN Kazi committee — a stand rejected by the provincial government, which was of the view that NWFP’s original share for the 2002-03 financial year comes to around Rs24bn.
The sources said that in case Wapda did not disburse funds to NWFP at an early stage, the province would start ‘feeling the music’ due to increasing shortfall under the net hydel profit head.
The contentious issue of net hydel profit hampering the working relationship of both the administrative entities, since long, is one of the two main issues creating obstacles in the way of finalization of the new National Finance Commission (NFC) award determining resource distribution plan for the next five years.
The NWFP government, according to the sources, wanted its stand on the issue to be protected under the new NFC getting it resolved through arbitration.
The province has conveyed its stand on the issue to the federal authorities concerned.
“The ball is now in the federal government’s court to resolve the issue by making Wapda agree to arbitration,” said the sources, adding that “what best can NWFP do after having committed to arbitration, it is Wapda which is dragging its feet over the issue.”