Peshawar   -   The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet on Monday approved essential expenditures of the province for the month of May while directing all departments to finalise their budget proposals for the next financial year. 

The approval of the essential expenditure was necessitated by the fact that in the absence of the assembly, budget for the current financial year was approved by the caretaker cabinet at different intervals. It also resolved to timely convene the budget session of the KP Assembly for approving budget for the next financial year.

Presided by Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ali Amin Gandapur the meeting was held in Pakhtunkhwa House Islamabad on Monday in which detailed deliberations were held on various other agenda items. Ministers, advisors, special assistants along with relevant government officers attended the meeting.

Explaining the details of the decisions of the cabinet meeting, Adviser to the Chief Minister on Information and Public Relations Barrister Saif said that the cabinet took important decisions in its fifth meeting. He said that the cabinet decided that such ministers who do not belong to Peshawar and do not have an official residence will be given Rs200,000. If taken, rent will be paid by the government and the utility bills of the house will also be included in the same amount.

Barrister Saif said that since 2014, Rs70,000 were deducted from the ministers who avail the facility of official residence. He said that house rents have increased in 2024 and a suitable house can be found on this amount. It is merit to mention here that the cabinet approved amendment in the “NWFP Ministers Salaries,

Allowances and Privileges Act 1975” as well as revision of the terms and conditions of the adviser and special assistants to the Chief Minister. The amendments have been carried out to facilitate residential accommodation of the ministers due to shortage of government residences and non-availability of rented homes as per rates fixed in the act.

Barrister Saif said that keeping in view the backwardness and security situation of the merged districts the provincial cabinet also approved Rs503 million for the deputy commissioners of the merged districts for the next three years. He said the expenditure would go through a process of audit and nothing would be kept secret. He said that from 2021 to 24 Rs20, 1303 million were allocated for deputy commissioners in tribal districts and FR.

According to details, district Bajaur will be given Rs40,000, Khyber Rs200,000, Kurram Rs25,000, Mohmand Rs150,000, North Waziristan Rs40,000, Orakzai Rs19,000, South Waziristan Upper Rs45,000, and South Waziristan Lower Rs15,000 during the upcoming three years. 

It is worth mentioning that before merger of erstwhile FATA with the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the DCs of tribal districts (previously called’ Political Agents) were collecting Agency Development Fund from the erstwhile agencies, which used to be spent for the general welfare of the agency. After merger, the federal government discontinued the collection of Agency Development Fund, Permits and other taxes.

The cabinet also approved the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Charitable Commission Employees Terms and Conditions of Service Rules 2024. The Charitable Commission has been established in 2019 under the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Charities Act 2019. 

The prime objective of the commissioner is to register, administer and regulate charities, fund raising, appeal and collection of charitable funds for charities through an effective monitoring and accountability of promoters, collectors and recipients’. Immediately these rules will enable the Provincial Government clear the backlog of pending cases of charity organisations waiting for registrations.

Disagreeing with the recommendations put forward in the meeting minutes of the Standing Committee of the Senate of Pakistan, the provincial cabinet decided to go ahead with the already approved plan for Swat Motorway Phase II. 

The Senate committee, in its meeting on May 16, 2023, suggested alterations to the project’s design, but the cabinet asserted that the current design adheres to international standards and sound engineering principles. Furthermore, the cabinet highlighted that the Senate committee’s recommendations are not obligatory for the provincial government and might impede the project’s timely execution.

As proposed by the Labour Department, the KP cabinet approved the establishment of Labour Court at district Kohat and the extension of the jurisdictions of labour courts to the merged districts. The cabinet also approved establishment of camp offices for the Labour courts in district Chitral, Buner and Bannu.

The provincial Cabinet also approved the allotment of 02 kanals state land, situated inside Tehsil Building at Jamrud, district Khyber, to the federal government for construction of office-cum-residential accommodation on payment of market value in relaxation of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Public Procurement Regular Authority Amended Act No V clause (14) sub-clause (1).

The Cabinet also constituted a ministerial committee to look into the grievances of the employees regularized under the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Employees (Regularisation of Services) Act 2018. The committee will review cases and present recommendations before the cabinet for consideration in compliance with the directions of the High Court.

The cabinet as per the request of the Registrar Peshawar High Court, approved Rs89.280 million for purchasing 18 Suzuki Swift cars for 18 newly created posts of senior civil judges in the family courts of the province.

The cabinet also approved an allowance of Rs300,000 per month for incumbent DG Aviation. The Administration Department had requested for it as per the agreement and service rules for the post of Director General Aviation, both serving and retired officer of BPS-20/21 of Pakistan Air Force can be posted as DG Aviation and the incumbent DG Aviation submitted a request that since he was being paid by the PAF, hence, an amount may be sanctioned to him in accordance with the said agreement.

It is to be noted that the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa owns two helicopters ie Ml-17 and Ecureuil AS 350 83 for official use.  

The Chief Minister on the occasion directed to prepare a case for converting one of these helicopters (Ml-17) into an air ambulance in the larger interest of the people of the province.

Relaxing the ban on the purchase of appliances for the Administration Department, the provincial cabinet allowed the provision of funds amounting to Rs18.808 million (Phase-I) for the purchase of handheld scanners and cell phone detectors. 

The appliances will be utilised to curb the increasing trend of using modern electronic gadgets for cheating in exams held under the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Public Service Commission.

The provincial cabinet also allowed the handing over of 1 kanal plot of DG Agriculture Research Centre to Pakhtunkhwa Highways Authority for construction of PKHA Complex. 

The plot is annexed to the under-construction PKHA Complex on G T Road at Tarnab while in lieu thereof the Agriculture Department will be given another adjacent plot in the same number khasra.