CDWP approves 56 projects
By Asim Hussain

ISLAMABAD—The Central Development Working Party (CDWP), which met here on Saturday with Deputy Chairman Dr Akram Shiekh, accorded approval to 56 projects of paramount importance valuing Rs 99.8 billion, including foreign exchange component of Rs 37.4 billion.
A spokesman of the Planning Commission, Asif Sheikh, while briefing journalists after the CDWP meeting, stated that the meeting approved 56 projects in toto. Of the total 56 projects, 15 projects have been revised and their net addition in total cost now stands at Rs 4.9 billion, he said.
“The meeting approved 25 projects in infrastructure valuing Rs 61.1 billion, including Rs 30.1 billion foreign exchange components (FEC).”
In social sector, the CDWP meeting approved 30 projects in toto of Rs 37.5 billion, having Rs 6.2 billion FEC. In addition, another project of Rs 1.2 billion with Rs 1.1 billion foreign exchange components was also approved, he said.
The spokesman said the meeting approved 20 projects at the country level valuing Rs 42.2 billion having FEC 12.9 billion. The meeting approved 12 projects worth Rs 11.3 billion for Punjab, 8 projects worth Rs 5.7 billion in Sindh, 6 development projects worth Rs13.3 billion in the NWFP, 4 development projects worth Rs 1.6 billion in Balochistan, five projects of worth Rs 24.4 billion for the AJK and one project of worth Rs 1.2 billion with FEC Rs 1.1 billion in Fata.
Of the eight projects located in Sindh, two projects costing Rs 0.7 billion have been approved on 50:50 cost sharing basis.
Of the 5 AJK projects, the spokesman said that one project namely “Construction of buildings, provision of furniture and equipment for 13 high schools for district Kotli, Azad Kashmir” costing Rs 0.3 billion will be fully financed by the AJK government.
For the two projects of energy, the AJK will provide only 25% of the total cost whereas the federal government would provide the balance amount, he said.
Two AJK projects namely Muzaffarabad City Development Project (MCDP) worth Rs 21.356 billion and West Bank Bypass Construction Project in Muzaffarabad City worth Rs 1.676 billion would be financed from Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (Erra) budget, the spokesman maintained.
He said the CDWP also conceptually cleared nine projects namely, establishment of Bio-safety Level-3 Laboratory (BSL-3) at Animal Sciences Institute National Agricultural Research Centre, Islamabad, Conservation and development of Indus delta mangroves ecosystem to combat devastation caused by Tsunamis/cyclones in the costal belt of Sindh, Bagh City Development Project (BCDP), Rawalakot City Development Project (RCDP), construction of waste water management treatment plant at Gujrat, feasibility studies of sewerage and drainage system in Lahore and Walton cantonment, up-gradation of optical transport network by replacing existing SDH (622 Mbps) system with next-generation SDH (10 Gbps) and DWDM platform, BMRE/restructuring of Heavy Mechanical Complex Pvt Ltd Taxila and construction of one pilot Darul-Ilm in Balochistan.
He said the following position papers were submitted to CDWP for consideration, Oil palm cultivation in coastal areas of Balochistan, PEC standards bidding/contract documents.