CDA lump sum budget allocation causes difficulties

[Lahore_Real_Estate]

ISLAMABAD - The Capital Development Authority (CDA)’s finance wing has allocated funds to several of its directorates during the current financial year budget due to which the authorities of these directorates are facing technical difficulties in spending or allocating the funding for projects.
“The total outlay of the financial year 2011-2012 is Rs 23.99 billion. Of the total budget the authority has allocated Rs 6.2 billion for the CDA’s engineering wing which is 52 % of the total budget. Rs 1984.70 million were allocated for the Estate Management wing, Rs 784.02 million for the Planning and Designing wing, Rs 800 million allocated for the Environment wing, Rs 200 million for the Finance wing, 250 million for the Administration wing and Rs 1834 million for the CDA’s reserves,” an official source said.
The source said the allocation of budget to the various directorates was against the rules and regulations. “In the past the CDA Finance wing had allocated funds to its various wings under different heads or for different projects. Allocating a lump sum to the directorate is creating technical problems”, he said. He said the heads of the directorates had contacted the CDA’s Finance wing in this regard and requested them to allocate the budget under different heads. “The allocation of lump sum funds to various directorates would badly delay the various projects in the city”, he said.
The official said the main reason for the allocation of lump sum funds to the directorates was the lack of skillful staff in the Authority’s Finance wing. “A deputy director has been heading the CDA’s Finance wing since the last six months due to negligence of the CDA’s high ups”, he said.
He said the CDA’s members of Finance had given the charge of acting director of Finance to the deputy director. He said according to the rules, grade 19 officers who had a vast experience of finance management should head the CDA’s Finance wing as director.
He said the lack of skillful people in the finance wing would further increase financial crises in the CDA. As a result, they would no longer be able to launch new mega projects such as the construction of highways in the current year, he said.
The source said the CDA would generate Rs 13.25 billion through self-finance resources including sale of land at Park enclave, sale of plots at D enclave, disposal of plots and from the income of the project management office. The civic body would generate Rs 4.066 billion through the revenue department under property, water, toll, environment, and municipal tax and other allied receipts. “The CDA will generate Rs 3 billion through Municipal Bonds”, he said.
The official said the total government allocation for CDA under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) is Rs 2.08 billion and will further get Rs 1.58 billion from the Federal Government for the maintenance of the President and Prime Minister House and other sensitive installations in the current year.