Quick impact plan seeks courts for ex-Fata by year-end

PESHAWAR: Working on the directives of Prime Minister Imran Khan, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has rolled out the quick impact plan for the newly merged districts of the erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata).

It envisages the establishment of courts by the end of this year and holding of Local Government (LG) elections in these districts like rest of the province on June 30. The quick impact plan was actually finalised at a meeting with the prime minister on December 31 last year.

An official of the Civil Secretariat privy to the meeting confided to The News on Monday that the prime minister was not happy with the slow pace of merger process and reforms implemented in the former tribal areas. He said the prime minister told the provincial leadership that he would keep abreast of the implementation of the plan on regular basis.

The quick impact plan encompasses 12 themes through which the government would seek to ensure the extension of services of the state organs and service delivery departments to the newly merged tribal districts. The minister of law and parliamentary affairs and the chief secretary and secretary finance have been tasked to ensure the establishment of courts in the merged districts by December 31.

Chief Minister Mahmud Khan, chief secretary and secretary home have been assigned the task to provide platforms for dispute resolution and grievance redressal till February 28. By the end of the current month they would promulgate governance law for the interim period. The elders at the district level would immediately be nominated for peacekeeping and conflict resolution by the chief secretary and relevant commissioners.

Under the plan, the chief minister and chief secretary were tasked to expedite the transition of the remaining FATA secretariat departments into provincial secretariat and complete the transfer by the end of next month. The quarters concerned will prepare today a detailed schedule for ministers and administrative secretaries’ visits to the merged tribal districts. The provincial cabinet would also hold a monthly meeting to review progress on the merger of Fata with KP.

Under the plan, the post of the additional chief secretary (ACS) Fata secretariat would be abolished and his role transferred to secretary home and tribal affairs by the end of the current month. Also, the merger of Planning and Development (P&D) section of Fata with the Planning & Development department, KP would be completed next month. All foreign-funded programmes in the merged tribal areas would also be transferred to Planning & Development department by the end of this month.

However, all subsidies, current payments, development budget and other grants would continue until the next National Finance Commission (NFC) award is finalised. Under the Law and Order theme of the plan, the secretary State and Frontier Regions (SAFRON), secretary Home and Inspector General of Police (IGP) KP would ensure filling of 2,200 vacant posts of Levies by March 31. By the end of June they would hire at least 6,000 police officials for various positions and all the Levies personnel would be trained in accordance with police standards.

The IGP KP and secretary Home would also develop a sequential implementable strategy to extend policing to merged districts and induct deputy superintendents of police (DSPs), inspectors and sub-inspectors from the erstwhile tribal areas.

The Local Government Department would functionalise 16 existing and new municipal corporations in the tribal districts by providing basic equipment and vehicles and filling staff vacancies by March end. It would immediately complete the pre-delimitation work for local government elections in the tribal districts.

The Finance Department has been directed to utilize existing funds and distribute additional Rs1 billion in interest-free microfinance initiatives under Insaf Rozgar Scheme with Bank of Khyber/Akhuwat support and expand the Youth Employment Programme to the merged tribal districts for digital up-skilling and incubation support by March end.

The ‘Storey da Pakhtunkhwa’ scholarship programme for top board position holders would also be introduced in the tribal districts by the end of June. Among other actions in the sports and education sectors, 500,000 families would get Sehat Insaf Card in the tribal districts by the end of the current month.