Cabinet takes up rightsizing of more ministries today

ISLAMABAD: The federal cabinet is all set to grant approval for right-sizing of more ministries/divisions in Tuesday’s (today’s) meeting, being held with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in the chair.

Finance Minister Mohammad Aurangzeb undertook a hectic exercise to abolish several attached departments of more ministries and his report would be considered by the federal cabinet to grant a go-ahead.

The right-sizing of more ministries is on the agenda of the federal cabinet, scheduled for Tuesday (today), said a minister while talking to The News on Monday. It would be a test of the sitting government as to how it is going to implement politically tough decisions, especially on the front of right-sizing of different ministries and attached departments in order to implement the 18th Constitutional Amendment in letter and spirit. The finance minister, along with his team, inquired from ministries and attached departments about their reasons for justification to exist in the future at the federal level.

Meanwhile, the finance ministry made it clear that the funds allocated for ad-hoc relief allowance could not be utilised for any other purpose including re-appropriation and additional allocation of funds for the current fiscal year. An office memorandum, No. F.4(2)-CAO (MoF) /Strategy/4, dated 24th September, 2024, issued by the finance ministry regulation wing, cited Finance Division Budget Wing’s OM on the subject and stated that the fund allocated for ad-hoc relief 2024 could not be used for any other purpose. These funds are allocated/provided to meet the expenditure against Ad-hoc Relief Allowance 2024 under A0125E and A0121X, it added.