The Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet, meeting under the chairmanship of Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb at the Finance Division, has approved Rs. 183.5 million through a Technical Supplementary Grant in favour of the Special Communication Organization for the installation of telecom sites and telephone towers in District Shigar, Gilgit-Baltistan. The allocation is intended to improve mobile coverage and connectivity in one of the country’s more remote and underserved regions, where terrain and geography have historically made infrastructure deployment both costly and technically challenging.
The same meeting saw the Economic Coordination Committee approve a wide range of other supplementary grants across several federal ministries. A summary submitted by the Cabinet Division received approval for Rs. 7,026.3 million through a Technical Supplementary Grant for the Sustainable Development Goals Achievement Programme, intended to ensure continuity of development projects, prevent cost escalations, and support timely achievement of programme objectives. The Ministry of Defence received approval for a Technical Supplementary Grant of Rs. 10.15 billion for the Hangor Project of Pakistan Navy under the Rafale Aircraft and Force Development Package 2030.
Seven summaries submitted by the Ministry of Interior and Narcotics Control were also approved, covering Rs. 692.9 million for security arrangements during the Islamabad Peace Talks, Rs. 241 million for compensation related to the suicide bomb blast at Imam Bargah Khadijah-tul-Kubra in Taralai, Islamabad, Rs. 528 million for operational requirements of the Pakistan Land Ports Authority, Rs. 800 million for procurement of Fast Patrol Boats and associated infrastructure for Pakistan Coast Guards, Rs. 1,883.7 million for the Expansion of Safe City Islamabad project, Rs. 150 million for operational requirements of the National Counter Terrorism Authority, and Rs. 413.9 million for security charges related to the Reko Diq Project. The committee also commended the successful conduct of the Islamabad Peace Talks and acknowledged the efforts of all stakeholders involved in facilitating the process.
Further approvals included Rs. 733 million for Pakistan Television Corporation to meet salary requirements for June 2026, a Technical Supplementary Grant of Rs. 1.3 billion for the modernisation and upgrading of Pakistan Mint under Phase II-A, and Rs. 4.377 billion for the Government of Gilgit-Baltistan to support current expenditure requirements and priority initiatives in the region. On the energy and infrastructure side, the committee approved continuation of syndicated running finance facilities for Pakistan State Oil with a ceiling of Rs. 100 billion, as well as a revised framework for a Deed of Settlement with Cnergyico PK Limited under the Pakistan Oil Refining Policy 2023, aimed at resolving the Late Payment Surcharge issue and supporting refinery upgradation and investment.
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