ISLAMABAD: The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) on Saturday approved 19 development projects worth Rs411.01 billion in various sectors, especially in Sindh and Balochistan.

The Ecnec meeting, presided over by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, also approved a multimillion-dollar World Bank project for the realignment of Karakoram Highway (KKH) between Thakot and Raikot, costing 13.067 billion yuan.

The meeting considered 21 agenda items recommended to it in various meetings of the Central Develop­ment Working Party (CDWP) and accorded approval to 19 projects.

On June 15, Prime Minis­ter Shehbaz Sharif decided to remove Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb from his position as Ecnec chairman. In his place, Mr Dar, who also holds the portfolio of foreign minister, has been appointed as the alternate chairman of Ecnec, which is responsible for making decisions on economic and development plans.

An official announcement said the meeting was led by Mr Dar due to the prime minister’s hectic schedule, and it was attended by the finance minister, planning minister, deputy chairman of the Planning Commission, representatives from provincial governments, and other senior officials.

Among the projects falling under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the forum cleared the realignment of KKH between Thakot and Raikot at the cost of 13.067bn yuan as well as the revised PC-I of New Gwadar International Airport.

The new Gwadar airport is scheduled to become operational within the calendar year.

The forum, however, did not clear the re-modified PC-I for the upgrade of Railways main line-1 (ML-1) and advised the Pakistan Railways to consider preparing smaller projects and packages specific for financing and implementation.

Ecnec approved several projects being undertaken in Sindh, including the revised Flood Response Emergency Housing Project, costing Rs296bn. The cost will include Rs50bn committed by the federal government. An amount of Rs30bn has been allocated in PSDP 2024-25 as federal share for housing reconstruction in Sindh.

Mr Dar informed the forum that the federal government remains committed to providing its share in housing reconstruction efforts in Sindh. Other Sindh projects that were approved included the Karachi Water and Sewerage Services Improv­ement Project Phase-II and Comp­etitive and Liveable City of Karachi.

The forum also cleared revised PC-I of operationalisation of Green Line BRTS in Karachi at the cost of Rs13.502bn, while observing that the Sindh government should consider increasing the fare to reduce subsidy being borne by the federal government. It also cleared the National Highway Authority-executed rehabilitation and reconstruction of a 86km stretch of the N-5 national highway between Moro and Ranipur.

To expedite the reconstruction and rehabilitation of flood-affected areas in Balochistan, Ecnec approved four sub-components of $400 million World Bank-funded Integrated Flood Resilience and Adaptation Programme.

This included $155m housing reconstruction and restoration sub-component, $50m road infrastructure sub-component, $40m livelihoods component and $30m irrigation infrastructure component.

An amount of Rs11.2bn has been allocated in PSDP 2024-25 for reconstruction projects in Balochistan. The forum directed that reconstruction activities in Balochistan be undertaken expeditiously while ensuring top quality.

Other projects approved by the forum included electrical and mechanical works and allied buildings as well as access roads of Lowari tunnel at the cost of Rs33.25bn and 48-megawatt Jagran hydropower station at Rs13.99bn so that the project is completed by December 2024.