Erstwhile Fata region: KP govt slams Centre for causing delay in release of uplift funds

PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has severely criticized the federal government for unnecessary delay in release of uplift funds for ex-Fata region.

Federal government is usurping constitutional rights of smaller federating units so we have decided to approach finance division over stalled fourth quarter tranche of development for the newly-merged districts (NMDs), previously known as Federally Administered Tribal Areas, Taimoor Saleem Khan Jhagra, KP Minister for Finance said this while addressing at a news conference here on Thursday.

The minister alleged the present federal government failed to release the fourth quarter development budget for the newly-merged districts.

The centre has deliberately halted funds of a whopping Rs 17 billion of NMDs, the minister said.

He added after inclusion of erstwhile Fata in Insaf Health Card Programme, the funds were not being released for the newly-merged districts, on which agreement was made during the previous federal government. However, he said the delay in release of funds of NMDs is tantamount to usurping rights of the smaller federating units.

The minister said the present government, which recently had come into power, didn’t release the fourth quarter (Q4) of the development funds for the NMDs.

Before merger of the Federal Administered Tribal Areas with KP, the minister informed that the erstwhile Fata budget was at Rs 32 billion that has been increased to Rs 77 billion, showing an increase thrice percent during the last three years.

Similarly, he said the development budget of tribal districts was at Rs 21 billion that has been increased to Rs 37 billion in provincial fiscal budget 2019-20.

Likewise, he added an adjustment in the development budget being made in FY 2021-22 and increased to Rs 54 billion in tribal district uplift funds.

Jhagra said the KP can make a maximum contribution from Rs 3 billion to Rs 5 billion in development funds of the NMDs.

Similarly, the minister said the present federal government didn’t pay a single penny on the head of Net Hydel Profit to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022