Government funds for Cancer hospital.

Nawaz gives nod to cancer hospital in all provincial capitals

By Mateen Haider

ISLAMABAD: The National Economic Council (NEC), which met here on Thursday with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in the chair, decided to construct a cancer hospital in every provincial capital.

Prime Minister Sharif remarked that Federally Administered Tribal Area (Fata) needs special attention and current developmental schemes need to be expedited there.

The meeting ordered inquiry into Quetta Water Supply Scheme where despite an expenditure of Rs10 billion there was nothing to show on ground.

The meeting also asked the Balochistan government to prepare a feasibility of solar panels to overcome energy shortages in the province.

The provincial government was also directed to plan a water supply scheme for Gwadar.

Earlier, the Council of Common Interests (CCI), with Prime Minister Sharif in the chair also, approved the mechanism for at source deduction of outstanding power sector payable of the provinces.

Under the mechanism which will be effective from July 1, the provinces and the federal government are to reconcile old arrears within 30 days’ time.

Today’s meeting also gave its approval to a draft of the Pakistan Energy Efficiency and Conservation (PEEC) Bill 2014 and for its tabling in the National Assembly.

The council also okayed a draft amendment in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 in relation to the restoration of executive magistracy. The amendment would later be tabled in the Parliament for formal approval.

The CII moreover ordered an inquiry into irregularities in the Kachi Canal project which is to be conducted by international auditors. The prime minister also expressed his displeasure at the delay in the inquiry by concerned officials.

He directed Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Asif to take action against those responsible for delaying the inquiry and submit a report at the next meeting of the CII

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'No more drone strikes in Pakistan'

By AP

WASHINGTON: The CIA's targeted killing program in Pakistan, once the mainstay of President Barack Obama's counterterrorism effort, is winding down.

Because of stricter rules, diplomatic sensitivities and the changing nature of the al Qaeda threat, there hasn't been a US drone strike in Pakistan's tribal areas since Christmas. And American officials say opportunities for drone attacks will dwindle further as the CIA and the military draw down in neighboring Afghanistan, reducing their intelligence-gathering footprint.

“The program (in Pakistan) appears to have ended,” said Peter Bergen, who has closely studied drone strikes for the New America Foundation, a Washington think tank.

US officials won't go that far, but Obama announced this week a plan to pull nearly all American troops out of Afghanistan by the end of 2016.

The targeted killing program in Pakistan relies on drones flown from, and intelligence gathered in, US bases in Afghanistan that would then be closed.

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Also read: Obama stresses need for transparency in strikes

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In a major foreign policy speech at the US Military Academy Wednesday, Obama said the US would continue to carry out occasional drone strikes against terrorist targets, but he cited Yemen and Somalia, not Pakistan, where Hellfire missiles once rained down at a rate of two per week.

Armed US drones are still flying over Pakistan's tribal areas, and CIA targeting officers are still nominating militants to the kill list, according to US officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorised to discuss the covert program publicly. But over the last five months, no missiles have been fired.

Several factors are driving the change, US officials say. Many of the senior al Qaeda figures in Pakistan have been killed. Those who remain are much harder to target because they are avoiding mobile phones and traveling with children, benefiting from stricter targeting rules designed to prevent civilian casualties.

The drawdown of US troops from Afghanistan has eliminated the need for “force protection” strikes against large gatherings of militants in Pakistan suspected of plotting attacks against American troops.

Also, the tribal areas of Pakistan are no longer the hotbed of al Qaeda activity they once were. Hard core militants from Pakistan have gone to Syria and Yemen, home to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which US officials consider the most dangerous al Qaeda affiliate.

And Obama administration officials are pushing to have the US military, not the CIA, carry out drone strikes. Since the military generally requires permission from a country to operate on its territory, most analysts don't believe it could carry out regular drone attacks in Pakistan.

The CIA and the White House declined to comment.

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Related: Interview: ‘US drones are better than PAF jets’

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The current drone ceasefire in Pakistan is by far the longest pause since President George W. Bush ordered a stepped-up campaign of targeted strikes in that country's tribal area in the summer of 2008.

The pace intensified under Obama. All told, there have been 354 strikes in Pakistan since 2004, according to Long War Journal, a website that tracks the strikes through media reports.

But the rate of strikes began falling in 2011 and decreased each year since. Last year, Obama announced stricter targeting criteria, including a provision that no strike would occur unless there was “a near certainty” that civilians would not be harmed.

Even before that, American officials appear to have made the calculation that it was no longer worth attacking lower level militants in Pakistan, given the bitter opposition to the strikes in that country.

Two studies, one by the New America Foundation and one by researchers at NYU and Stanford, estimate that as few as 2 per cent of those killed in Pakistan drone strikes since 2004 have been senior militants.

Most killed were lower level fighters, and some fraction — how large is disputed — have been civilians.

Obama seemed to allude to the backlash Wednesday when he said, “Our actions should meet a simple test: we must not create more enemies than we take off the battlefield.”

In December, the Obama administration reached an informal deal with Pakistan that the CIA would suspend drone strikes – except against the most senior al Qaeda leaders – while the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif pursues peace talks with the Taliban.

The talks have sputtered, and last week, Pakistani fighter jets killed more than 60 people in North Waziristan, a militant stronghold, according to local media reports.

But Pakistani officials say the cessation in drone strikes has strengthened support for counterterrorism operations among a public that deeply resented an American bombing campaign on its soil.

The hiatus has made the government feel that the US is hearing Pakistan's concerns, said one senior official, speaking only on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to comment by name

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Land policy for registration of Orphans unveiled.

Nadra unveils landmark policy for registration of orphans

By Nasir Iqbal

ISLAMABAD: In a landmark move, the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) unveiled on Thursday a new policy to deal with the registration of parentless or abandoned children.

Under the new policy, the head of an orphanage where such a child lives is eligible to become that child’s legal guardian by providing an affidavit. This replaces the old practice of going to the relevant court to seek guardianship certificates for each such child.

Before this, a child could only be legally adopted if a guardian court issued a decree to the person claiming guardianship under the Guardian and Wards Act of 1890. Without a court decree, no-one could claim to be the legal guardian of a parentless or orphaned child. In the past, orphans could not be registered with Nadra because they had no legally appointed guardian, which kept them from obtaining national identity cards, the primary proof of citizenship.

The policy was disclosed before a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, who ordered the chief secretaries of the four provinces to ensure that all relevant provincial departments were aware of the new policy and extended their complete assistance to the authority to ensure its implementation.

The matter was first brought to the notice of former chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry by philanthropist and social worker Abdus Sattar Edhi in 2011. In a letter to the then-CJ, Mr Edhi complained that Nadra was not issuing ‘Form B’ to children whose parentage was unknown or those who had been abandoned by their parents and were now living in Edhi shelters.

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Heads of orphanages eligible to become legal guardians

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When Mr Edhi’s daughter, who runs the shelters, tried to adopt and register such children, her requests would be denied by Nadra in the absence of a formal certificate of guardianship.

The court had earlier framed key questions regarding the adoption of abandoned children that required interpretation from both religious scholars and legal minds. It had also appointed former high court judge Tariq Mehmood and Karachi-based legal expert Makhdoom Ali Khan amici curiae (friends of the court) in the matter.

Afnan Kundi, who represented Nadra during Thursday’s proceedings, told the court that the authority had so far registered 610 destitute children who were living in orphanages. A total of 3,087 children remained unregistered.

But with the implementation of the new policy, most of the hurdles to the registration of abandoned children had been tackled, he said.

Under section 9(1) of the Nadra Ordinance 2000, the authority is bound to register every citizen of Pakistan, inside or outside the country, who has attained the age of 18 years. The birth of a child must also be registered by a parent or a guardian not later than one month after the birth.

Under the new policy, it is mandatory that the orphanage in question is registered with Nadra, a complete record of all children previously residing there is available and all documents of the relevant authority of the orphanage are in order.

In case a child’s parentage was unknown, whatever name was recorded by the orphanage in its records would be registered with Nadra. The orphanage would be responsible for providing these details and could assign any name to the child’s parents, as long it wasn’t a generic or placeholder name, such as Edhi, Abdullah, Adam or Eve.

For each new registration, it would be mandatory for the orphanage to report each new birth to Nadra and pre-empting any future claims of parenthood, DNA tests should be conducted by the orphanage if possible.

The chairman had also decided to issue identity cards to such orphans free-of-cost, the Nadra counsel told the court.

The court held that with the promulgation of the policy, Mr Edhi’s grievance appeared to have been addressed

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NEC approves plan for Power Generation.

ISLAMABAD: The National Economic Council (NEC) approved on Thursday an ambitious 10-year plan called Vision 2025, envisaging Pakistan to be among top 25 world economies, universal primary education with 100 per cent enrolment, an increase in annual exports by six times to $150 billion and double power generation to 45,000MW by 2025.

Presided over by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and attended by all provincial and regional chief executives, a meeting of the NEC authorised the planning commission for regular monitoring of progress on implementation of the long-term development strategy through a performance delivery unit against key performance indicators.

The meeting approved a framework for the 11th five-year plan in line with broad outline of the Vision 2025 and directed the ministries, provinces, special areas and public sector agencies to make concerted efforts in coordination with the planning commission for effective implementation of the vision.

Based on seven key pillars are drivers of growth to transform Pakistan into a vibrant and prosperous nation by 2025 through a shared vision, political stability, peace and security, rule of law and social justice.

The vision has positioned human resource development at the top of national agenda by capitalising on existing social capital, strengthening it and improving the human skill base of the population to optimally contribute to and effectively benefit from economic growth. For this, the country has to make significant leap forward in areas like education, health and social development to take full advantage of its youth bulge.

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NEC approves Vision 2025

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Under pillar one it promises that a larger share of the GDP, at least 4pc to education and at least 3pc to health, would have to be allotted to achieve universal primary education with 100pc net primary enrolment, increase higher education coverage from 7pc to 12pc and increase proportion of population with access to improved sanitation from 38pc to 90pc.

Under pillar two for sustained, indigenous and inclusive growth, the plan promises to make every Pakistani better off by 2025 by removing a lot of existing horizontal and vertical, intra- and inter-provincial, as well as rural and urban inequalities.

The key goals in this case include a modern performance driven public sector, transforming Pakistan into one of the 25 largest economies in the world, leading to upper-middle income country status and increasing annual exports from $25bn to $150bn.

Under pillar three for a responsive, inclusive and transparent system of governance at all levels, from federal to provincial and district levels, will ensure an efficient and transparent government operating under the rule of law and providing security of life and property to its people.

It strives to develop a skilled, motivated and “results-focused” civil service, an effective regulatory framework and an infrastructure that leverages supporting technology and global best practices.

The goal here is to get a place in the top 50th percentile for political stability (bottom 1 percentile), no violence and terrorism (bottom 1 percentile), and control of corruption (bottom 13th percentile) as measured by the World Bank’s Worldwide Governance Indicators.

Pillar four promises sufficient energy, water and food security for sustainable economic growth and development. It plans to double power generation to 45,000MW and provide uninterrupted, affordable and clean ‘energy to all’. It also seeks to increase storage capacity and improve efficiency of usage in agriculture by 20pc and reduce food insecure population from 60pc to 30pc by 2025.

The pillar five – private sector led growth and entre-preneurship – aims to make Pakistan a highly attractive destination for private sector investment, with conditions that allow private investors to successfully participate in its development.

The target is to rank Pakistan in the top 50 countries on the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Rankings and increase diaspora investment (via remittances) in private sector to $40bn.

Pillar six seeks to increase competitive knowledge and value-addition to utilise resources in a productive manner – based on merit, quality and innovation, instead of unproductive rent seeking behaviours. Key targets would be to quadruple contribution of total factor productivity to growth and improve Pakistan’s score on the World Bank Institute’s Knowledge Economy Index from 2.2 to 4.0.

Pillar seven seeks modernisation of transportation infrastructure, greater regional connectivity. Key related targets are to ensure reduction in transportation costs, safety in mobility, effective connectivity between rural areas and markets and urban centres, inter-provincial high-speed connectivity through road and rail networks including China-Pak Economic Corridor to make Pakistan a regional hub of trade and commerce and increase road density from 32km/100km2 to 64km/100km2, and share of rail from 4pc to 20pc of freight handling in the country.

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Fugitive to return home.

WASHINGTON: Fugitive self-proclaimed spy Edward Snowden said Wednesday he wants to return home, as he defended his massive leak of US intelligence secrets, saying abuses of constitutional rights left him no choice.

“If I could go anywhere in the world, that place would be home,” Snowden said almost a year to the day since he revealed a stunning US surveillance dragnet mining data from phones and Internet companies around the world, including Europe.

“From day one, I said I'm doing this to serve my country. Whether amnesty or clemency is a possibility, that's for the public to decide,” he told NBC in his first interview with US television since the scandal broke in early June last year.

And he sought to defend himself against charges led by the US administration that he is a hacker and a traitor who endangered lives by revealing the extent of the NSA spying program through the British daily The Guardian.

“The reality is the situation determined that this needed to be told to the public. You know, the Constitution of the United States has been violated on a massive scale,” he said.

“How can it be said that this harmed the country when all three branches of government have made reforms as a result?” Snowden asked, looking relaxed and calm during the interview in a Moscow hotel.

But top US officials laughed off the idea of a clemency. Secretary of State John Kerry said the 30-year-old former CIA employee should “man up” and return to face trial.

Snowden also alleged he was not just a low-level contractor working for the CIA, as the White House has repeatedly insisted.

“I was trained as a spy in sort of the traditional sense of the word in that I lived and worked undercover overseas -- pretending to work in a job that I'm not -- and even being assigned a name that was not mine,” he told NBC.

Snowden said he had worked covertly as “a technical expert” for the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency (NSA).

But National Security Advisor Susan Rice disputed his contention, replying “no” when asked by CNN if he had been a highly-trained undercover spy.

Snowden however blamed the United States for forcing him into exile in Russia

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Taliban condemned

Taliban condemn US exit strategy from Afghanistan

By AFP

Updated about 16 hours ago

File photo

KABUL: Taliban insurgents Wednesday denounced US plans to keep troops in Afghanistan until the end of 2016, threatening to wage war against the “occupation” until the very last foreign soldier pulls out.

Outlining the US strategy to end America's longest war, 15 years after the September 11 attacks, President Barack Obama confirmed Tuesday that the 32,000-strong US deployment in Afghanistan would be scaled back to around 9,800 by the start of 2015.

Those forces would be halved by the end of 2015 before eventually being reduced to a normal embassy presence with a security assistance component by the end of 2016.

But underscoring the instability still roiling Afghanistan, two Americans were slightly wounded in an attack on a US consulate vehicle in Afghanistan's western city of Herat on Wednesday.

An unidentified gunman on a motorcycle fired a rocket-propelled grenade at the US vehicle in Herat, five days after insurgents attacked an Indian diplomatic mission in the same city near the border with Iran.

Taliban insurgents responded to Obama's announcement by ruling out an end to fighting until a complete withdrawal of US forces had taken place — a grim indicator that Afghanistan's long, bloody war is far from over.

“Now that Obama has announced that he will keep around 10,000 troops until the end of 2016 and continue their occupation, Afghanistan Islamic Emirate condemns it and considers it a violation of sovereignty, religion and human rights,” said a Taliban statement.

The statement, which used the insurgents' name for the country, appeared to inflate the number of troops scheduled to remain under Obama's plan.

“The American leaders should do now what they plan to do two years later. Even if one American soldier is in Afghanistan, it is not acceptable to our nation and jihad (holy war) will continue against them.”

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'Afghanistan is not ready'

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The threats reaffirmed the fears raised by some observers in Afghanistan that a complete withdrawal of US-led international troops would send the nation spiralling into chaos.

Fawzia Koofi, a female member of Afghanistan's parliament, posted on Twitter: “We are proud of the moral/self-esteem of our security forces, however, I had expected more than ten thousand troops to continue post 2014.”

Others warned that the lingering militant threat could lead Afghanistan down the path of Iraq, where violence is at its highest level since 2008.

“Afghanistan is not ready,” said security analyst Mia Gul Wasiq. “If they withdraw irresponsibly, Afghanistan will become like Iraq.

“We have not been able to establish a strong government... the US has not done its job, that was to root out terrorism from Afghanistan. The war and terrorism is still there, their job is not done. So their plan and timetable on paper is not practical.”

There was no immediate comment on Obama's announcement from outgoing Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

The US drawdown relies on Afghanistan signing a long-delayed Bilateral Security Agreement laying out the terms and conditions of the US military presence in the country after this year.

Karzai has refused to sign the agreement, but both candidates vying to be his successor in next month's presidential election run-off — Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah — have said they will sign the deal.

“I'm hopeful we can get this done,” Obama said, as he outlined the end of US involvement in a conflict which began when American-led forces invaded Afghanistan to oust the Taliban and hunt Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden after the 2001 attacks on New York and Washington.

“We're finishing the job we started,” he said.

US combat operations would draw to a close at the end of 2014, meaning US troops would no longer patrol Afghan cities, towns or valleys from next year, Obama said, underlining that future security would hinge on the Afghans themselves.

US troops remaining in Afghanistan after 2014 would be available to train Afghan forces while supporting counter-terrorism operations against Al Qaeda remnants, Obama said, saying the withdrawal would herald a “new chapter in American foreign policy”.

Obama made an unannounced visit to US forces in Afghanistan on Sunday, spending four hours at Bagram, one of the secure bases that will house support troops after their combat mission ends

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Minorities religious sites to be given protection.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif chairs a meeting with Parliamentarians from Sindh who called on him at PM House in Islamabad on Wednesday. – APP Photo

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday expressed serious concerns over acts of vandalism at religious sites belonging to different faiths in Sindh and directed concerned authorities to hold inquiry into the matter.

Speaking to Parliamentarians from Sindh at the Prime Minister House, he said that the federal government would undertake rehabilitation of religious sites that were damaged.

The notice was taken after dozens of protesters from the Sikh community pushed past the front gate and entered the grounds of the Parliament building in Islamabad last week, protesting attacks on their houses of worship.

Earlier this week, the Pakistan Sikh Council had warned the government that the community will launch a countrywide protest movement if all the culprits who had desecrated their holy book, Guru Granth Sahib, are not arrested by May 31.

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Also read: Anglican leader says Pakistan's minorities should have equal rights

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The prime minister, during today’s meeting, also directed to establish a dedicated cell at the Prime Minister Office for Sindh affairs. He also said that the position of provincial party leader and other vacant provincial party posts would be filled soon.

“Our party is engaged in politics of reconciliation and strengthening democracy, said Sharif.

Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, Federal Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Minister for Railways Khawaja Saad Rafiq, Minister of State for Railways Abdul Hakeem Baloch and Senator Mushahidullah Khan were also present in the meeting.

The Parliamentarians apprised the premier about development issues of their respective constituencies and lauded the progress in Karachi operation. They also felicitated him on his successful visit to India.

“We have always respected mandate of other parties and expect the same from them,” said the prime minister. He said that it was his commitment to the people of Sindh that law and order situation would improve.

“Bringing back normalcy in Karachi is my priority as it is the economic hub of Pakistan,” said Prime Minister Sharif.

He further said that majority of mega-development projects like Karachi-Lahore Motorway, Thar Coal Power Project, Jamshoro Power Plant, Gaddani Power Park, Port Qasim Power Plant and Karachi Circular Railway would not only be a source of economic prosperity, but would also create millions of employment opportunities for locals.

The delegation included, Amir Bakhsh Bhutto, Marvi Memon, Shah Muhammad Shah, Ismail Rahu, Imdad Hussain Chandio, Zain Magsi, Dr Rahila Gul Magsi, Saleem Zia, Syed Zafar Ali Shah, Aslam Abro, Ghulam Mustafa, Munawar Raza, Haji Hanif Memon, Asghar Rind, Ayaz Ali Sheerazi, Dr Darshan Panchi, Bhawan Das, Dr Ramesh Lal, Irfanullah Khan Marwat, Humayoun Khan, Haji Shafi Jamoot, Mrs Soreth Thebo, Shah Hussain Shah Sherazi, Ejaz Shah Sherazi, Ameer Haider Sherazi, Aqil Jatoi, Masroor Jatoi and Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim.

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National Security increased.

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan gave a clear indication on Wednesday that the government was ready to up the ante in Karachi with operations against extortionists, target killers and organised crime.

Saying that the Karachi operation was “heading in the right direction”, Chaudhry Nisar said it was time to raise the level, and expand the scope, of the action. “The momentum achieved over the past few months must not be allowed to diminish,” he said.

The remarks came during a meeting with Sindh Rangers Director General Major General Rizwan Akhtar where the two discussed the ongoing law enforcement action in Karachi.

“The operation has the support of all peace-loving people in Karachi and we must live up to their expectations,” the minister said.

He said that improved coordination between Rangers, police and the provincial government would go a long way in helping establish lasting peace in Karachi, adding that the federal government would provide all the resources necessary to enhance the capacity of law enforcement agencies.

The decision to expand the scope of the operation comes days after the Sindh government removed Additional Inspector General Shahid Hayat, a decision that raised many an eyebrow in the federal government.

Information Minister Pervaiz Rasheed recently asked the Sindh government to reconsider its decision. “It was opinion of all sections of society that over the last 11 months, Shahid Hayat performed remarkably well and he should remain at the post so that the operation in Karachi could be taken to its logical conclusion,” he remarked.

Reacting to the minister’s remarks, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) described the ongoing operation in Karachi as ‘misdirected’ and called for action against banned outfits “involved in bank robberies and kidnappings” in an attempt to finance terrorist activities. “Extortion continues unabated, but nobody touches the Taliban who control entire areas in Karachi,” MQM leader Tahir Mashhadi told Dawn. He said that as many as 45 MQM activists had been ‘disappeared’ so far and 29 had met their deaths while in custody.

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NEC approves Development Budget.

Govt eyes 5.1pc growth rate in next financial year

By Khaleeq Kiani

Published about an hour ago

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- File Photo

ISLAMABAD: The National Economic Council (NEC) meets here on Thursday to approve a long-term development blueprint — Vision 2025 — for the country with an initial consolidated development programme of Rs1.310 trillion and economic growth rate of 5.1 per cent during the next financial year.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will preside over the meeting to be attended by chief ministers of the four provinces and Gilgit-Baltistan, the prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, the governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhawa and federal and provincial ministers for finance and development.

Under the vision, the government aims to achieve export target of $150 billion, transform Pakistan into an upper-middle income country, reduce multi-dimensional poverty level from 49pc at present to less than 20pc by 2025.

To achieve the vision, the maximum focus of public sector investment will be on promotion of small and medium enterprises, the higher education commission and knowledge economy to meet challenges of globalisation. The vision is based on seven priority pillars like the social sector, economic inclusive growth, the energy sector, productive development, collective governance, competitiveness and connectivity.

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Long-term development blueprint likely to be approved today

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The NEC is expected to approve a Rs1,175bn development programmes for federal (Rs525bn) and provincial (Rs650bn) governments, besides a Rs135bn expenditure by Wapda and the National Transmission and Dispatch Company from their own resources as recommended by the Annual Plan Coordination Committee early this week. Some increase in development allocations could not be ruled out if the prime minister and chief ministers find some fiscal space in their respective areas, an official said.

The meeting will also approve macro-economic annual plan for the next fiscal year, envisaging 5.1pc growth in gross domestic product, to be supported by a modest 3.3pc growth in agriculture, a respectable 6.8pc improvement in industrial output and 5.2pc growth in the services sector.

This will depend on better energy supplies, normal weather conditions, positive investor confidence and political stability, according to a working paper on annual plan 2014-15 available with Dawn.

The government will focus on three core areas – taxation, investment and export – for increasing growth.

Inflation is estimated to grow by 8pc, while investment is targeted at 15.7pc of GDP against current year’s 14pc. Fixed investment is estimated to grow to 14.1pc of GDP from current 12.4pc while national savings rate is expected to improve from 12.8pc of GDP this year to 14.2pc in 2014-15.

Trade deficit is estimated at $17.2bn on the basis of $27bn exports and $44bn imports, showing an increase of 5.8pc and 6.2pc, respectively. The current account deficit is projected at $2.8bn (1.1pc of GDP) against current year’s $2.6bn (1pc of GDP).

The NEC is also expected to issue guidelines for a uniform education standard and curriculum across the country and do away with more than 200 schemes launched on political basis or those facing repeated delays for more 7-8 years.

The meeting will issue directives to complete all projects with 70pc physical progress within a year and those having more than 50pc progress in two years. A total of 303 new projects with an estimated cost of Rs1.6trn will be made part of the PSDP.

The power sector is being given top priority with highest allocation of Rs260bn, apart from Rs135bn self-financing by Wapda and the NTDC. The transport and communication sector got the second priority position with an allocation of Rs163bn, including Rs114bn for the National Highway Authority and Rs40bn for rehabilitation and revival of Pakistan Railways.

Rs45bn would be allocated for Karachi-Lahore Motorway’s land acquisition whose construction will be undertaken on build, operate and transfer basis and the Chinese investment. The prime minister’s dream project – Pak-China Economic Corridor – will also be a major focus of development programme with an investment of about Rs51bn while new initiative of Rs36bn will be launched by the prime minister for national integration through reduction in development disparities.

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Power consumption charges revised.

- File Photo

ISLAMABAD: The government on Wednesday decided to charge the power consumers the cost of about three per cent additional technical losses and interest on power sector loans through an average of Rs2.35 per unit impact in power tariff.

The crucial decisions were taken at a meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet presided over by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar to honour a commitment given to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Both the moves were earlier rejected by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) in different petitions and requests from the Ministry of Water and Power and the distribution companies (Discos).

“The ECC also considered and approved a summary of Ministry of Water and Power for issuance of policy guidelines to Nepra to incorporate debt servicing on actual basis in revenue requirements of Discos which would be adjusted in tariff of Discos on annual basis,” said an official statement.

An official explained that about Rs147 billion worth of additional loans and syndicated term finance certificates contracted over the past couple of years by the government or on its sovereign guarantees would be financed through inclusion of interest payments in the consumer tariff. The debt servicing cost on this account was estimated at about Rs10bn.

A previous dispensation of similar debt stock of about Rs306bn taken over by the federal government a few years ago was made part of the federal budget but the government had given a commitment to the IMF to reduce power sector burden on budget and instead pass it on to consumers. In a related decision, “the ECC also approved the summary of the Ministry of Water and Power for issuance of policy guidelines to Nepra to rationalise T and D (transmission and dispatch) losses target of 12.82 per cent to 15.75 per cent” as had been done in the case of power tariff for 2012-13.

The distribution companies now claim that their T and D losses, known as technical losses, stood at 17.55pc for 2013-14.

A Nepra official said the federal government did not have the powers under the Nepra Act to issue policy guidelines on tariff standards and other benchmarks that become part of the tariff at any stage.

He said that section 31 of the Nepra Act empowered the federal government to issue policy guidelines to the extent of final consumer tariff on the basis of average tariff determined by the regulator for prudent revenue requirements of power companies.

He said Nepra had been gradually scaling down the impact of technical losses to consumers to provide reasonable time to power companies to improve efficiencies and control losses.

The Nepra official said the 12.82pc technical losses allowed to power companies for current year were based on revenue requirements of the power companies and in the light of December 2013 decision of the Supreme Court of Pakistan for reducing technical losses and resisting government advices inconsistent with Nepra Act and against consumer interests.

The Nepra official further said the regulator had held in various determinations that increase in borrowing was a direct result of non-recovery of bills by power companies from government departments and dishonest private consumers while losses were resulting out of mismanagement and inefficiencies for which honest consumers should not be burdened any more.

The ECC also approved allocation of gas from SARA and SURI gas fields located in district Ghotki, Sindh to GENCO-II (Jamshoro) at mutually agreed terms and conditions. The gas fields remain dormant due to lack of investment despite estimated gas reserves 14-15 BCF (billion cubic feet) that could be utilised with an investment of around $6-8 million.

The committee also approved re-allocation of low BTU gas from Bahu gas field to Fauji Kabirawala Power Company Limited (FKPCL) until October 2029 to ensure its smooth operations and avoid conversion of the project to any expensive alternate liquid fuel.

The committee also approved transfer of tax exemption given to PSA-Gwadar Pte Limited (of Singapore) as per ECC decision of February 2007 to China Overseas Ports Holding Company Limited for the remaining period of the term.

The ECC also approved the summary of Revenue Division for exemption from income tax to profits and gains derived by coal mining projects in Sindh supplying coal to power generation projects only

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PMLN completes first year with proved distinction.

File photo

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government completed its first year in power with a unique distinction – it did not enact a single law.

Although 11 bills were passed by the National Assembly in this period, apart from the finance bill for 2013-2014 (which does not require approval of the upper house), the current government could not get a single bill passed through the Senate and signed by the president. However, 12 ordinances were tabled in the first parliamentary year ending on May 31.

The PML-N enjoys a near-absolute majority in the National Assembly but cannot even claim a simple majority in the Senate, where the main opposition PPP holds a majority. The second parliamentary year is set to begin on June 2 and a joint sitting of both houses has already been convened.

According to data obtained from the National Assembly Secretariat, the lower house passed the finance bill in June last year, five bills in February this year, followed by three in March and two in April. These are currently awaiting debate in the Senate.

As many as 43 private members’ bills and 13 government bills were introduced in the National Assembly during the first parliamentary year. However, all 56 are pending discussion in standing committees. 

On the other hand, the government tabled 12 ordinances, including four controversial anti-terror laws, before the parliament amid protests by opposition members.

A comparative analysis of this data reveals that the current parliament’s legislative performance in its first year has been quite poor as compared to the first year performance of parliaments elected since 1985.

In its first year of the government of Mohammad Khan Junejo, parliament approved 23 laws from March 20, 1985 to March 20, 1986. Benazir Bhutto’s first government approved 13 laws in its first year.

The first Nawaz Sharif government got 24 laws approved from parliament in its first year. During Ms Bhutto’s second tenure, parliament passed 33 laws in its first year in office.

Mr Sharif’s second government set a record when parliament approved 47 laws during its first year and a total of 74 bills were passed into law until Oct 12, 1999.

The previous PPP government managed to pass only four bills in its first parliamentary year

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