DC office exceeded its annual expenses by more than 82pc in 2019-20.

Byline: Kalbe Ali

ISLAMABAD -- The deputy commissioner's office exceeded its expenses by more than 82pc during the ongoing 2019-20 fiscal year because of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Azadi March and efforts to contain the coronavirus in the capital.

Budget documents show that the approved budget for the deputy commissioner's office was Rs234.1 million for the whole year, but the department has spent Rs426.3m by the end of the fiscal year.

A significant increase was seen in operating expenses, by about 36pc to Rs103m, while the deputy commissioner's office purchased plants, machinery and other assets for Rs9.1m and Rs158.4m was spent on grants and subsidies.

The authorities also relied on additional forces for security purposes in the capital, a policy that will continue in the future.

Dept spent Rs426.3m, compared to an allocation of Rs234.1m, likely due to the JUI-F Azadi March, coronavirus outbreak

A total of Rs11.9m was incurred on the deployment of forces in aid of the civil administration, for which Rs12.1m has been allocated for the 2020-21 fiscal year.

This includes Rs10.7m in operating expenses for the next fiscal year, which was also the sum allocated in this fiscal year.

The budget for the next fiscal year for the deputy commissioner's office is Rs196.6m, while operating expenses have been slashed to Rs57m. Another Rs1m has been allocated for physical assets and Rs3.5m in terms of grants.

A senior officer in the administration said that operating expenditures can be enhanced if there are any unforeseen emergencies.

The officer said that there is also no need to purchase machinery and other fixtures every year, so budgets did not need to allocated under such heads for the next fiscal year.

The budget for the Islamabad police has been increased from Rs7.6m in the ongoing fiscal year to Rs8bn in the 2020-21 fiscal year, but the police's operating expenses have been decreased significantly from Rs560.5m to Rs386.6m.

Despite the JUI-F march in October and November 2019, the police utilised only Rs455.6m out of its allocated Rs560.5m budget in the 2019-20 period.

Budget documents show that the police were understaffed and operating below sanctioned numbers. There were 315 officers in the police in 2019-20, which has fallen to 295 in 2020-21. Similarly, staff strength is down from 11,240 to 11,199.

Spending by the...