Law enforcement agencies get Rs1.50 bn

ISLAMABAD: The PTI government has allocated Rs1.50 billion for the paramilitary and civil armed forces in the budget announced by Minister of State for Revenue Hammad Azhar for the year 2019-20 in the National Assembly.

The funds allocated will cover the expenses for the office of the Chief Commissioner Islamabad Capital Territory, Director-General Immigration and Passports, Frontier Corps Balochistan, Frontier Corps KP, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Coast Guards, Pakistan Rangers Lahore, Pakistan Rangers Sindh, Frontier Constabulary KP, Civil Defence, National Academy for Prisons Administration and the Gilgit Baltistan Scouts. The autonomous bodies covered under this head include National Police Academy, National Database and Registration Authority Islamabad, and National Counter Terrorism Authority (Nacta).

The Chief Commissioner Office ICT has been allocated Rs9,264 million, DG Immigration and Passports Rs2,952 million, Civil Armed Services Rs83,863 million, Frontier Constabulary Rs10,300 million, Pakistan Coast Guards Rs2,183 million and Pakistan Rangers Rs23,349 million. Other expenditures of the Interior Ministry have been allocated as Rs6,714 million. For the Federal District Judiciary Rs423 million has been allocated. For the Police, the government has imposed a small cut as Rs2,632 million has been allocated for 2019-20 as against Rs3,034 million allocated for the year 2018-19.

For the Communication Division, the government has allocated around Rs67 billion for various activities including policy formulation and revision of overall communication services, road safety on national highways and motorways, road infrastructure, development, expansion and maintenance, research and institutional development for the improvement of road transport and its management, training services on the construction technology, building and maintenance of national highways and work on national trade corridor, the Green Line bus transit system and provision of secure and time efficient postal services across the country.