Cash-strapped govt squanders money on image-building.

ISLAMABAD -- The current fiscal year is about to close with extraordinarily tight fiscal positions and the austerity policy of the PDM government, but discretionary spending on development schemes for constituencies of parliamentarians of the coalition partners and publicity continues to grow.

The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet on Tuesday enhanced the allocations for parliamentarian's constituencies under the so-called Sustainable Development Goals Achievement Programme (SDGs-AP) by Rs1bn to Rs91bn when it approved a total of nine supplementary grants worth about Rs11bn.

The meeting presided over by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar was told that the government had allocated Rs70bn in the budget 2022-23 for 'running community-based SAP' to achieve the SDGs addressing the urban-rural social development constraints across the country.

The funds for the scheme were increased by Rs17bn to Rs87bn in October last year to ensure that all 174 members of the National Assembly belonging to Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) get Rs500m worth of small schemes - sewage lines, gas, water and electricity connections, and repair and maintenance of streets - in the name of SDGs.

Accordingly, the sources said, the Ministry of Planning surrendered Rs17bn from funds earlier allocated in the budget for areas such as Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan and parts of the provinces.

The funds were subsequently enhanced by Rs3bn more to Rs90bn 'which has already been released/transferred to the respective ministries, divisions and provincial governments under the Demand No. 92-IB-0600-DeveloApment ExpenAditure of the Cabinet Division', the ECC was informed on Tuesday.

Of the already disbursed funds, the lion's share of Rs46.125bn went to Punjab, followed by Rs29.155bn...