Murad affirms commitment to transparency as pre-budget discussion concludes in PA

Concluding the pre-budget discussion in the Sindh Assembly on Friday, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah maintained that his government was committed to maintaining law and order in the province and ensuring transparent financial planning in governance affairs.

He also informed the legislators that there was currently no construction taking place to build the proposed Cholistan Canal. The CM highlighted that there was no construction activity from Head Suleimanki to Marot, which is located 200 kilometres from the barrage. At the Marot site, a 5,000-foot-long canal was found to be abandoned, and no further activity was observed, he said.

The CM showed digitised maps and budgetary documents in the House showing that no expenditures had been incurred so far on the construction of the Cholistan Canal. At the outset of his speech, the CM expressed concerns about the rising wave of terrorism in the country, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. He assured the assembly that the Sindh government and law enforcement agencies were closely monitoring the situation to prevent any security threats in the province.

“For decades, lawlessness was a major issue in our country and province, but after 2013-14, conditions started improving,” he said and added that while challenges remained, the Sindh government was committed to ensuring peace and security.

He stated that the Sindh Assembly had previously passed a resolution against terrorism, underscoring the collective responsibility of all political parties to prioritise national security above political differences.

Shah highlighted that Sindh was unique in having the Rule 143 of the assembly, which allowed structured pre-budget discussions, unlike the National or other provincial assemblies. He emphasied that this rule enabled all members of the legislature to discuss budget matters, share recommendations and propose solutions.

Despite last year's delay due to a government formation in March, Shah noted that this year's discussions were on track, even during Ramazan. He praised the assembly's productive debates and the increased participation by the legislators compared to the previous year, where only 31 members engaged in the debate due to political tensions.

In a rare moment of political unity, the CM acknowledged the leader of the opposition for recognising the government's good intentions despite differences over the execution strategy. “I’m pleased to hear that there are no doubts about our intentions,” Shah said, emphasising the Pakistan Peoples Party's commitment to the welfare of Sindh’s people since 1970. He assured the House that the government was committed to addressing the opposition lawmakers' concerns, ensuring financial transparency, and maintaining law and order in Sindh.

The CM underscored the significance of discussing infrastructure and water supply issues in Karachi, calling the city “the heartbeat of the country.” He pledged to document all suggestions put forth by the concerned MPAs for consideration during the 2025- 26 budget preparation.

He informed the assembly that in the current finacial year, the total budget was Rs3,056 billion. As of February 28, 2025, nearly Rs2,000 billion had been released, and Rs1,454 billion already utilised with the employee-related expenses, including salaries and pensions, forming a significant portion of the released funds.

He explained that the government employees’ salaries were disbursed directly from the Accountant General's Office, but this did not include the salaries for municipal employees, as their payments did not come from the treasury. “So far, Rs600 billion has been allocated for government salaries,” he revealed.

He said that for paying the local government salaries, a total of Rs160 billion was allocated as grants for municipal departments for this year, and added that by February, around Rs107 billion had already been disbursed, with nearly 70 per cent of this amount going towards salaries.

In addition to salaries, the largest portion of the Sindh government's grants went to health institutions such as the Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT) and National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD), the CM said. “This has proven to be a highly effective way to directly benefit the people.”

He explained that currently, the Sindh government was spending Rs100 billion every month to pay salaries. He said the government had streamlined the projects’ funding and the projects costing below Rs50 million now received full upfront funding if there were no issues. He added that of the 1,153 development schemes under Rs50 million, 1,035 had received full funding. For larger projects, funds were released in instalments and 610 of the 624 such schemes had over Rs50 million already funded, he stated.

He remarked that an automated system had been introduced for the disbursement of development funds, allowing Rs100 million to be released initially for the projects worth Rs400 million provided that there are no other issues. “The threshold for releasing funds has decreased from 80 per cent to 60 per cent of the initial allocation, enabling quicker follow-up funding,” he said.