GILGIT, Dec 20: The Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly on Tuesday unanimously approved the establishment of the Gilgit-Baltistan Sports Board in line with the recommendations of a committee headed by the law minister.

It also thanked the Azad Jammu and Kashmir government for increasing the number of seat in its professional colleges for Gilgit-Baltistan people.

Speaker Wazir Baig chaired the session during which minister for local government said the regional chief minister had sanctioned the Rs10 million administrative expenditure for municipal committees each and that the annual development plan valuing Rs220 million for the said committees had already been approved.

He said assistant commissioners of the respective municipal committees were appointed as administrator, while local government elections in the mountainous region would be held in October or November next year.

The minister said the services of the tourism department's contractual employees were regularised and a serious consideration would be given to such cases in other departments, too.

He urged lawmakers to inform the planning and development department about development schemes in their respective constituencies for approval.

The speaker later adjourned the session for today (Wednesday). MAN KILLED:

An elderly man was killed allegedly by his rival near the Supreme Appellate Court of Gilgit-Baltistan in Gilgit on Tuesday.

Police said Abdul Manan, the dead person, had migrated to a Gilgit village from the remote valley of Tangir over threats from rivals more than 20 years ago.

The killer later handed himself and the gun over to police at the city police station.