Briefing the newsmen deputy chairman Planning Commission, Dr Mohammad Akram Shaikh said the 3rd Ecnec meeting of the current financial year held with Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz in the chair approved these projects.
Giving details, he said that the meeting approved 25 new projects at a cost of Rs 100.9 billion and infrastructure development was given foremost importance with 17 projects of Rs 62.2 billion followed by 10 social sector projects of Rs 41.4 billion.
These include: infrastructure, transport and communication energy, physical planning and housing, water, social and agriculture sectors besides the cost of three ongoing projects was revised from Rs 3.3 billion to Rs 5.7 billion.
Ongoing projects included ground water recharge of Quetta, Pishn, Mustang and Mangochar valleys of Rs 1.1 billion, extension of Pat Feeder Canal for utilisation of Indus Water in Balochistan 3.9 billion and women health project Sindh of Rs 731.856 million.
The new projects for transport and communication include: rehabilitation, upgradation and conversion of 400 coaches of Rs 3.43 billion, rehabilitation of telecom system and SCO infrastructure damaged due to earthquake of 8th October 2005 of Rs 630 million, dualisation of Lahore Kasur Road Khana to Kasur from 26.65km to 55.00km Length of Rs 2.1 billion, construction of Chaudhry Zahoor Ellahi Shaheed Bridge over River Chenab at Shahaz Pur in District Gujrat of Rs 1.13 billion, construction of dual carriageway from Gujrat to Salam interchange (Motorway) through Mandi Bahaudin (96.4km) of Rs 2.9 billion, improvement of 78.2km sections of National Highway N-45 of Rs 2.4 billion, dualisation of Kasur Ganda Singh Road Section from 55km to 68.10km in district Kasur of Rs 545.274 million, bridge over River Indus connecting Larkana and Khairpur district of Rs 4.8 billion, construction of additional carriageway of Indus Highway (N-55), Sehwan-Khairpur Nathan Shah-Ratodero Section (200km) of Rs 12.3 billion, rehabilitation and reconstruction of 175km of damaged section of national highways in the earthquake affected areas of Rs 5.97 billion.
The Ecnec also approved detailed engineering design and tender documents of Diamer/Basha Dam Project of Rs 1.7 billion. Physical planning and housing sector projects included water supply scheme from Shalman to Landi Kotal, Khyber agency of Rs 579.19 million, construction of eastern and expansion of southern sewage treatment plants, Hyderabad of Rs 915.300 million and preparation for Punjab Irrigated Agriculture Improvement Programme (PIAIP) project of Rs 609 million and Lower Bari Doab Canal Improvement Project (LBDCIP) of Rs 17.20 billion.
The meeting also approved three projects of education sector including reconstruction of middle schools buildings damaged by earthquake in the districts of Abbotabad, Manshera, Batagram, Kohistan and Shangla of NWFP of Rs 2.01 billion, Balochistan Education Support Programme of Rs 1.5 billion and establishment and operation of basic education community school in the country of Rs 7 billion.
Health sector projects included establishment of medical tower at Pakistan Institute of medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad of Rs 2.2 billion, construction of 2nd floor Sheikh Zayed Hospital main building of Rs 841.939 million, construction of new medical tower at JPMC Karachi, (expansion of tertiary care) of Rs 3.3 billion and National Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (NMNCH) programme of Rs 19.1 billion.
Higher education project included establishment of medical college, university of Sargodha with a cost of Rs 802.158 million while information technology project of Land Records Management and Information Systems at a cost of Rs 3.1 billion. The meeting also approved a project of agriculture research for Agriculture Development Programme of Rs 3 billion.