CDWP approves 11 uplift projects of Rs102 billion

ISLAMABAD: The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) has approved 11 development projects worth about Rs102 billion with a foreign exchange component of about Rs42 billion, including the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Support Project worth Rs409 million.
Four out of the 11 projects were recommended to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec).
The CDWP meeting was held at the Planning Commission with Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms Ahsan Iqbal in the chair, which was attended by senior officers concerned of relevant ministries and representatives of sponsoring agencies, provincial governments and special areas.
The approved projects were mainly related to energy, environment, health, transport and communication and the Ministry of Planning, Development and Reform. An amount of Rs1.15 billion has already been earmarked for these projects in the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) 2015-16.
Four projects were recommended to the Ecnec.
The first was 20MW hydropower project Hanzel, Gilgit, which will cost Rs6.248 billion and will be completed in four years.
Rs1 billion have already been allocated in the PSDP 2015-16, and has an FEC component of Rs948.37 million.
Of the energy sector, another project 220-KV transmission system network reinforcement in Islamabad and Burhan worth about Rs3.5 billion, with an FE component of Rs1.65 billion, will be completed in three years and its PSDP allocation is Rs250 million.
The third project of the energy sector recommended to the Ecnec was 1,410MW Tarbela 5th Extension Hydropower Project, to cost about Rs80 billion, which will be completed in four years. One project of the Pakistan Railways ‘Procurement/manufacture of 585 hopper and 25 bogie vans for coal transportation (Phase-II)’ is to cost Rs6 billion, and has an FE component of about Rs4 billion.
Out of the seven CDWP approved projects, the Developing Reverse Linkage between Marmara Research Centre (MRC), Turkey, and Pakistan Metrological Department (PMD) will cost Rs101 million, and has an FE component of Rs80 million.
It will be completed in two years. Construction of 200-bed cardiac hospital at Gilgit will cost Rs2.6 billion and will be completed in three years.
‘Construction of staff quarters’ for the Ministry of Railways is located in Sindh and Punjab and will cost Rs475 million and is to be completed in 15 months by September 2016. Construction of Sanam, Palai and Kundal Dam Project (Swabi) will cost about Rs2.336 billion and is to be completed in three years.
Three projects of the Ministry of Planning, Development and Reform include: China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Support Project worth Rs409 million, National Initiatives for SDGS worth Rs1 billion and Integrated Transport Infrastructure Planning and Management Unit worth Rs300 million.
Ahsan Iqbal instructed that rationalisation of the cost should be done for the first two, while rationalisation of human resource must be done for the last one.