16/04/2012 (Business Recorder) - The Planning Commission is reported to have refused to accept the decision of a high-powered committee about allocating 13 projects to the Ministry of National Food Security and Research (MNFSR). The projects had either been stopped or allocated to provinces after the devolution of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to the provinces.

Syed Khursheed Shah, the Minister for Religious Affairs, chaired the committee. The committee comprised Minister for Inter Provincial Coordination Hazar Khan Bijarani, Minister for Communication Arbab Alamgir Khan, Minister for Science and Technology Mir Changez Khan Jamali. Other members included Secretary Establishment Khusnood Akhtar Lashari, Secretary Cabinet Division Nargis Sethi, Secretary Finance Division Dr Waqar Masood Khan, Secretary Planning and Development Division Asif Bajwa and Secretary Inter Provincial Coordination Division Anisul Hasnain Musavi.

The committee, constituted by the prime minister to resolve post-devolution matters and to deal with concerns of different provinces, had restored 13 projects to MNFSR upon its request.

However, Asif Bajwa Secretary Planning Commission refused to accept this decision during a meeting with Secretary MNFSR Shafaqt Hussain Naghmi, a source told Business Recorder on Friday.

Source revealed that the Planning Commission informed MNFSR that the government had stopped or transferred these projects to other ministries and provinces subsequent to consultations with Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani. Therefore, he said, these projects could not be allocated to MNFSR.

The 13 projects focused on meeting the requirements of Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration, Azad Jammu Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan and Federally-Administrated Tribal Areas (Fata) and Balochistan.

The restored projects include the Agriculture Sector Development Load (ASDL-II), National projects to stimulate the adoption of permanent raised bed in Maize-Wheat and Cotton-Wheat farming system and Biological control of major cotton pests. Other projects include the Establishment of facilitation unit for participatory vegetable seed and nursery production programme, Commercialisation of tea production through public-private partnership, National Programme for Improvement of Watercourses and a programme implementation unit of ASPL-II. The special programme for food security and productivity enhancement of small farmers in 1012 villages, a crop maximisation project, restructuring of agric research system in Balochistan, Development of olive production and processing in Balochistan. Growing of oil palm in coastal belt of Balochistan and oil palm development project in Sindh and Balochistan, special programme for strengthening quality inspection services in compliance with WTO establishment of Integrated National Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services (NAPHIS) were also among the projects.