KARACHI: The provincial cabinet meeting held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah took decisions, including enhancement of financial compensation for the families of Shaheed and injured police at par with Punjab and also approved allowance for the policemen deployed in katcha area; approved Rs425 per 40 kg sugarcane price for the crushing season 2023-24 and approved establishment of IBA Sukkur Campus at Ghotki.
The cabinet meeting was held at CM House and was attended by provincial ministers, advisors, special assistants, Chief Secretary Sohail Rajput, Chairman P&D Hassan Naqvi, PSCM Fayaz Jatoi, and other concerned officers.
Compensation for Shaheed police personnel: The cabinet was told that presently, Rs. 10 million is being paid to the legal heirs of police personnel as financial compensation who embraces Shahadat in the line of duty.
The shuhda compensation would be as follows:
• Police - constable-Head Constable Rs23.5 million, including Rs10 million compensation and Rs13.5 million for construction of the house.
• ASI-SIP: Rs30 million, including Rs12.5 million compensation and Rs17.5 million for House construction.
• Inspector-DSP: Rs40 million, including Rs18 million compensation and Rs25 million for house construction.
• SP-SSP: RS48 million compensation, including Rs18 million compensation and Rs30 million house purchase.
• DIG & above: Rs70 million, including Rs20 million. Compensation and Rs50 million house purchase.
Provision of Transport: The family of Shaheed SP & above would be given a car (1300 cc) or an equivalent amount. Inspector and above shaheed official family would be given a car of 1000 cc or an equivalent amount.
Maintenance of Transport: Shaheed DIG police & above family would be given Rs100,000 per year for maintenance of transport, SP-SSP Rs75,000, Inspector-DSP Rs50,000, ASI-SIP Rs35,000 and PC and HC Rs20,000.
Compensation for shuhda died in a road accident:
• PC-HC: Rs3 million and Rs15,000 per annum maintenance of transport.
• ASI-SIP: Rs4 million plus Rs26000 for transport maintenance,
• Inspector-DSP: Rs4.5 million plus Rs37,000,
• SP-SSP: Rs5 million plus Rs56,000 transport,
• DIGP & above: Rs7 million plus Rs75,000 for maintenance of transport.
The cabinet also approved compensation for the injury/incapacitation. The compensation includes the category of terrorist attack, bomb blast etc Rs10 million in case of permanent incapacitation and Rs2.5 million in case of temporary incapacitation.
The Chief Minister decided that the compensation would be given right from 2017 and it would put an additional burden of Rs754 million per annum on the exchequer.
Katcha Allowance: Home Secretary Aijaz Shah told the cabinet that controlling crime and nabbing criminals, operating in Katcha area of Sukkur and Larkana divisions has remained a challenge. To cope with the situation, one component of the strategy was to place police personnel in the area on a permanent basis. Sindh Police has devised a plan to establish 20 Police Camps and 350 Police Posts in Katcha area of District Ghotki, Sukkur, Shikarpur, and Kashmore.
At present 4500 policemen have been deployed in the katcha area of Shikarpur, Kashmore, Sukkur and Ghotki. The IG police requested the cabinet to grant allowance for the police personnel deployed in the katcha area at a rate of Rs 10,000 per month.
The cabinet approved the request and its total impact on the exchequer would come to Rs540 million per annum.
Sugarcane Price: Advisor to CM on Agriculture Manzoor Wassan told the cabinet that he has consulted with the representatives of the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA), Sindh Zone. He proposed that the sugarcane price may be fixed at Rs425 per 40 for crushing season 2023-24.
Mr Wassan also proposed November 15 for the commencement of crushing for the season 2023-24. The cabinet approved the price and the crushing date.
IBA Sukkur campus at Ghotki: Minister U&B Ismail Rahu told the cabinet that IBA Sukkur has proposed to establish a campus at Ghotki.
Mr Rahu said that Circuit House, Ghotki may be handed over to establish the Ghotki campus of Sukkur IBA University. He requested the chief minister that Circuit House Ghotki may be handed over to establish the Ghotki Campus of Sukkur IBA University. The CM approved the request.
The cabinet decided that at the initial stage, the undergraduate degree programs BBA (Honours), BS (Computer Science), and B.Ed (Honours) would be started.
The cabinet also approved Rs150 million as one-time seed money for the Ghotki Campus, Rs250 million as an annual recurring grant in aid starting from 2023-24 onwards, and Rs50 million as Endowment Fund Grant starting from 2023-24.
The IBA Sukkur was also granted permission to purchase buses and other vehicles for the Ghotki campus.
Railway line from Islamkot to Chhor: Minister Energy Imtiaz Shaikh told the cabinet laying of railway line from Islamkot, Thar Coalfield – to Chhor, 105 km, and Railway Line from Bin Qasim to Port Qasim- M-9 was most important to transport coal from Thar coal to upcountry for production of the coal-fired power and for the cement factories and such other uses.
The coal deposits at Thar are huge, but due to the absence of transportation facilities, particularly the railway line, the coal could not be transported. Imtiaz Shaikh said that a number of meetings have been held with the federal government and finally a proposal has been submitted under which the Sindh government would have to extend a 50 percent loan of the total cost of the project for execution of the project.
The chief minister said that the railway authorities would have to pay profit to the provincial government. The cabinet approved the project.
Amendment in BOR Rules: Minister Revenue Makhdoom Mahboob told the cabinet that the Explanation of Sub-Rule (xix) of Rule 2 of the Sindh Valuation Table of Immovable Property Rules, 2022 read as "the agricultural land falling within the jurisdiction of Metropolitan Corporations, Municipal, and Town Committees shall be assessed in accordance with the adjacent residential category of the urban valuation table”.
The revenue minister said that by virtue of the present Rules, agricultural land situated within the limits of Metropolitan Corporations, Municipal, and Town Committees was assessed as per the adjacent residential category of the urban valuation table. This assessment results in an overvaluation of the agricultural land which is resented by the public.
The cabinet after discussion approved an amendment in the rule and now a
Assessment of agricultural land falling within the limits of Metropolitan Corporations, Municipalities, and Town Committees would be assigned a separate category for valuation and assessment of stamp duty.
The cabinet approved the constitution of the Worker Welfare Board with the Minister Labour as its chairman for another two years w.e.f May 2023.
M-9-N5 Link Road: The Sindh Cabinet decided that construction of Additional work of more than Rs2.4 billion for the construction of a new interchange and remodelling of the existing Kathore interchange would be done by NHA and FWO as a deposit work on M-9 and N-5 link road.
It was also decided that two more bridges and access roads for DHA City and Education City would be constructed by the Works and Services Department.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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