CDWP approves Rs 4 billion Swat development package

ISLAMABAD: The Central Development Working Party (CDWP), on Thursday recommended Swat Development Package of Rs 4 billion to the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (Ecnec) for approval.

Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Sardar Assef Ahmad Ali presided over the meeting.The project would help resettle the IDPs and generate economic activity in the area.Population welfare programme, an on-going activity being executed in all the provinces, has been recommended to the Ecnec for its further extension up to the year 2014 costing Rs 50 billion. The CDWP, however, has set up a committee to give recommendations to devise better delivery mechanism.

One of the officials who attended the meeting told The News that the population ministry had been unable to bring down the population growth rate from 3 per cent to 0.9 per cent as planned earlier. The current birth rate stands at 1.8 per cent, which means more efforts are needed to get the desired results. In countries like Japan and Sweden, the birth rate ranges between 0.3 to 0.9 per cent.

The CDWP approved 42 projects costing Rs107.2 billion including foreign aid component of Rs 10 billion. Of the 42 projects, 27 projects in infrastructure sector costing Rs49.3 billion, 13 projects in social sector costing Rs57.6 billion and two projects relating to commerce and industry costing Rs0.3 billion were approved on Thursday.

Setting up of 132 KV grid station in Bajaur at a cost of Rs 453 million and Dargai Pall small dam in South Waziristan Agency (Rs313.232 million) were also approved.

These schemes will not only resolve the electricity problem of these areas but also generate employment opportunity for people of the backward areas. The CDWP authorised Wapda to undertake a feasibility study of Pattan hydropower project. This project will generate 280 MW of electricity.

To improve the transport sector, bridges across the River Indus connecting Larkana and Khairpur, linking Kandhkot located on the National Highway N-55 with Ghotki and a bridge on River Ravi Kamalia Harrapa Road, district Toba Tek Singh, have also been recommended to the Ecnec for approval.

These projects will cost Rs 17.4 billion. The CDWP also considered three concept papers namely disaster management programme Sindh, communication system for coastal management in Arabian Sea (JICA) and plan to increase girls’ literacy to the middle school level in rural Sindh. Link...