PM asks provinces to contribute to uplift of merged areas
PM asks provinces to contribute to uplift of merged areas
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday urged the provinces to contribute to the uplift of the merged tribal areas and ensure prosperity of the locals.
He was chairing a meeting on the reconstruction and development of erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas under the funds provided by the federal government.
The prime minister acknowledged the immense sacrifices rendered by the people of merged areas for the country and said they needed to be given all basic amenities of life.
The meeting was attended by Finance Minister Shaukat Tareen, Planning Minister Asad Umar, Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mahmood Khan, Special Assistant Dr Shahbaz Gill, Special Assistant Dr Waqar Masood, Finance Minister KP Taimur Saleem Jhagra, the finance secretary and other senior officials.
The meeting was informed that the population of the merged areas was about 2.4 percent of the country’s total populace, which amounted to Rs 80 billion in the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award. However, the federal government was making an increased payments at the rate of four percent of the population.
It was highlighted that at present the payments amounted to Rs 146 billion compared with the Rs 84 billion before merger.
The meeting was informed that Rs 130 billion had been allocated in the federal budget 2021-22 for the development of merged areas in Khyber Pukhtunkhwa.
