The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) cabinet was chaired by Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur, approved the expansion of the Bus Rapid Transit service with 50 new buses and okayed multiple projects on Friday.
The 34th meeting of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) cabinet was chaired by Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur. Attendees included cabinet members, the chief secretary, additional chief secretaries, the senior member of the Board of Revenue, administrative secretaries, and the Advocate General of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
During the meeting, the cabinet approved the purchase of 50 additional diesel-hybrid buses for the BRT Peshawar system. Initially, Trans Peshawar had acquired 220 buses, and in 2022, 24 more buses were added, bringing the total to 244. The decision to purchase more buses was driven by public demand and the expansion of service to six routes.
The cabinet also approved an agreement between the provincial government and Pak Qatar Asset Management Company. A committee was formed to address the use of illegally harvested wood in the Arundu Gol and Upper Kohistan Forest Divisions of Chitral.
Amendments to the Public Private Partnership Rules 2021 were approved, which reduced the bidding period from 60 days to 30 days. Additionally, the cabinet approved a new Annual Development Program (ADP) scheme to address the salary arrears of ERA contract employees.
The meeting sanctioned additional funding for the construction of a Category D hospital in Balakot-Mansehra and allocated Rs 346 million for the purchase of modern medical equipment for the Peshawar Institute of Cardiology. Revised funding for projects aimed at improving facilities in basic health centres and rural health centres was also approved.
Furthermore, the cabinet allocated Rs 1 million in aid for the treatment of cancer patient Parveen Mukhtar and gave conditional approval for a grant-in-aid to establish a research centre at Islamia College University.
Necessary amendments to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa NGOs Rules 2024 were approved, as well as the purchase of two vehicles for the District and Sessions Judges in Khyber and Mohmand districts. The cabinet also relaxed the ban on vehicle purchases.
Rubab Mehdi was approved for appointment to the vacant post of Provincial Ombudsman, and the budget for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Highways Authority for the financial year 2024-25 was approved.
In response to the public challenges caused by summer load shedding, the cabinet allocated over one billion rupees for the timely repair of damaged electricity transformers. While the repair of these transformers is the responsibility of the federal government, the provincial government decided to approach the federal government regarding reimbursement for the repair expenses.
The cabinet approved a supplementary grant for settling electricity bill arrears for Water and Sanitation Service Companies (WSSCs) and Tehsil Municipal Officers (TMOs). Additionally, the cabinet agreed to include the Makhanial area in the Haripur Development Authority and formed a committee to implement relevant rules and regulations. Finally, necessary amendments to the Rules of Business for the Culture, Tourism, and Archaeology Department were also approved.
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