Tag: KP government

  • ‘Increase in dollar rate benefits us as we only pay in rupees,’ says PTI minister

    ‘Increase in dollar rate benefits us as we only pay in rupees,’ says PTI minister

    Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Information Minister Shaukat Yousafzai has said that the increase in dollar benefits Pakistan greatly as we only have to pay in rupees, not in dollars.

    While addressing the media on Wednesday, the KP minister said that the 3 billion rupees increase in Peshawar Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project due to rupee devaluation has not affected the national treasury, as we have paid that amount from our savings.

    “The increase in dollar value has increased the cost of BRT by Rs3 billion and at the same time helped us save over Rs3 billion because we only have to pay that amount in rupees, not in dollars”, the minister said.

    Shaukat also said that all those saying that the rupee devaluation is going to increase the amout have no idea what they are talking about.

    Watch Video:

    Meanwhile, Peshawar metro bus project misses its 6th deadline

    The Pakistan Tehreeke Insaf (PTI) led KP government has missed its sixth deadline despite announcements by the KP information minister that the project would be completed in time.

    Shaukat Yousafzai had earlier claimed that the project would be completed in 2020 and people would start getting its benefits from next year.

    He also claimed that 87% work on the mega project has been completed, adding that 30 stations had been finalised, while work on the remaining 10 stations was underway.

    Earlier, the minister had said the project would be finished by December this year, but reports claimed that the flagship project of the PTI government was unlikely to be completed in December, citing completion of only 16 stations out of over 40.

    Moreover, three bus depots made for Peshawar BRT were reportedly also under construction.

    “Even 10 per cent work has not been done on the Haytabad bus depot. No work has been done on the route from Hayatabad to Karkhano Market,” claim reports.

  • KP govt inaugurates IT lab at Guru Nanak School Peshawar

    KP govt inaugurates IT lab at Guru Nanak School Peshawar

    The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has inaugurated an IT lab at the Baba Guru Nanak School of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math in Peshawar in an attempt to make Sikh students more tech-savvy, Samaa reported.

    According to the details, the lab was inaugurated by Special Assistant to the KP Chief Minister on Science and Information Technology Kamran Bhangash and Adviser to the KP Chief Minister on Education Ziaullah Bangash.

    Kamran Bangash said, “Students here will be taught early-age programming, early-age robotics, and early-age stemming”.

    The classes at the lab have commenced on Monday, November 18. The students are initially being taught the basics of using a computer.

    “We have learned how cartoons and films are made and how dance parties are shot,” said a student of the institute. “We have also learned how to use different softwares.”

    A cake celebrating the 550th birthday of Sikh spiritual leader, Baba Guru Nanak, was also cut at the inauguration. Kamran said that the lab was a gift from the KP government to the Sikhs on this occasion.

  • Irregularities worth Rs7.44 billion detected in KP public departments

    The Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) has detected a large number of irregularities, worth Rs7.44 billion, in accounts of public sector enterprises (PSEs) of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), a private media outlet has reported.

    According to details, irregularities include 42 cases of provision of funds, wasteful expenditure on a rest house and delays in claim insurance.

    Apart from that, there are 13 cases of less/non-recovery, irregular retention of development funds, irregular award of contract, non-depositing of interest, non-deduction of tax and 11 cases of irregularities of miscellaneous nature during the financial year 2015-16.

    The audit report has also noted that the provision of funds to the Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organization (PEDO) was in violation of KP Energy and Power Development Fund Ordinance 2016.

    During the audit of Energy and Power Development (EPD) Fund Peshawar, for the year 2015-16, AGP observed that the authorities released Rs6,977.13 million from 2012-13 to 2014-15 to the organization for 7 projects.

    The EDO could only utilize Rs490.49 million during 2012-13 and 2014-15 on said projects, and the release of Rs6,486.64 million by EPD Fund was done without proper assessment and resulted in the loss of interest income amounting to Rs421.62 million.

    The second problem detected in the PEDO was the irregular expenditure of Rs14.88 million incurred in the appointment of Chartered Accountants (CA). The auditors are required to be appointed in consultation with the office of the AGP.

    The audit report also noted the non-recovery of outstanding dues worth Rs.66.70 million from allottees of industrial plots by Sarhad Development Authority (SDA).

    During the audit for the year 2015-16, it was also observed that the management failed to recover the recurring charges on account of maintenance, water and extension from the allottees of plots at Industrial Estates, Peshawar, Gadoon, Hattar, and Nowshera.

  • Burqas distributed among KP school girls

    Burqas distributed among KP school girls

    The government in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has distributed “Burqas” among students in girls model school in Cheena village of Rustam valley.

    According to the pictures circulating on social media, the authorities with the help of funds provided by Pakistan Tehreeke Insaf’s (PTI) former district council member, Muzaffar Shah, distributed 69 burqas among students in KP girls school.

    The development has come after the provincial government made it mandatory for the girls in schools to wear a veil.

    Earlier, the KP government had decided to make it mandatory for female students of government-run schools to cover themselves up in educational institutions with an abaya, gown or chador for protection against “unethical incidents” — harassment.

    But after facing widespread public criticism the KP Chief Minister Mahmood Khan directed the authorities to withdraw the mandatory burqa order.

  • PTI govt reluctant to get Peshawar BRT investigated

    PTI govt reluctant to get Peshawar BRT investigated

    The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has opposed the formation of a committee to investigate the Peshawar Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project, Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) has reported.

    As per the details, treasury members of the KP Assembly have
    opposed the opposition’s proposed suggestion to form a house committee to probe
    the long-pending project.

    The chair, however, has admitted the question for a full
    debate under Rule 48 of Assembly Procedure, reports said.

    “The government would not form a parliamentary
    committee unless it was aimed to facilitate people and provide them
    relief,” KP Law Minister Sultan Khan said on the floor of the provincial
    assembly during question hour.

    He rejected the allegations of corruption in BRT and said
    that public funds had been utilised on the project in a “judicious and
    transparent” way.

    The minister was responding to a question raised by Pakistan
    People’s Party (PPP) legislator Nighat Orakzai, who argued that public money
    had been “deliberately misused” in the project.

    According to an Asian Development Bank (ADB) report released
    earlier this month, the KP government significantly deviated from the original,
    agreed design and used inferior quality material in the Rs70 billion Peshawar
    metro bus project putting lives and assets at risk in the process.

    The inferior quality construction could damage the project’s reputation at the international level, warned the lender that had approved a $335 million (Rs53 billion) loan for the project in mid-2017.

    PESHAWAR METRO:

    The Peshawar metro is rather infamous for its incompletion as
    the authorities concerned have failed to meet deadlines time and again. The government
    has now issued yet another deadline for completion of the much-delayed project,
    saying that it will be operational by the end of current year.

    The KP government and the project’s execution agency had earlier promised to open the project, launched in October 2017, within six months on April 20, 2018. However, the deadline was missed.

    The project managers kept changing the launch dates from May
    20 to June 30 to December 31 in 2018 to March 23, 2019. The project’s cost has
    also jumped to Rs68 billion from earlier Rs49 billion.

  • 2800cc luxury car worth Rs8 million imported for KP minister

    2800cc luxury car worth Rs8 million imported for KP minister

    Amid the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government’s claims of continuing its austerity drive to save taxpayers’ money, a luxury car worth Rs8 million (Rs8,000,000) has been imported for a Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) minister.

    According to Dunya News, the 2800cc luxury car has been imported for KP Information Minister Shaukat Ali Yousafzai, who is only entitled to an 1800cc vehicle.

    It was decided that a double cabin worth around Rs5.5 million would be imported, however, the minister insisted on getting the luxury sport utility vehicle (SUV), reports said.

    The move comes despite Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan pushing for austerity measures to reduce the burden on the national exchequer ever since he assumed office last year.

    The austerity drive has faced multiple setbacks over the past 10 months owing to the apparent reluctance of the lawmakers in cutting down expenses.

  • VIDEO: ‘Hand govt over to Popalzai so Peshawar metro can be completed’, KP minister roasted

    VIDEO: ‘Hand govt over to Popalzai so Peshawar metro can be completed’, KP minister roasted

    Ruete Hilal Committee chief Mufti Muneebur Rehman has roasted the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government for seeking Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai’s appointment in his place so as to “end the moon-sighting controversy”.

    Popalzai is an Islamic cleric and head of the private moon-sighting committee at the historic Qasim Ali Khan Mosque in Peshawar.

    With his announcement on Monday that the moon of Shawwal had been sighted in KP and Eidul Fitr will be celebrated on June 4, Provincial Information Minister Shaukat Yousafzai suggested Popalzai’s appointment as the moon-sighting committee chairman, replacing Muneeb “to end the controversy”.

    “Eid is celebrated on one day all over Pakistan except a certain area of KP. We should stop this from happening. Mufti Popalzai has claimed to have sighted the moon and his claims have proven to be true a few times,” Yousafzai said.

    He added that Mufti Muneeb “should be rested for a while and Mufti Popalzai should be made the head of the moon-sighting committee”.

    Reacting to the statements, Mufti Muneeb said that Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai can’t be enrolled in the government, but the “government can be given under his control”.

    “Then everything that faces delay can be done beforehand. 24 hours before the deadline,” he said.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    “The Peshawar metro project undertaken by the KP government should be given under Poplazai’s supervision so that it can meet timely success,” he said with implied sarcasm.

    The federal government has already announced that according to the Met Office, the moon will be sighted in the country on Tuesday and eid will be celebrated on Wednesday (June 5).