Quetta: A meeting of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), chaired by Asghar Ali Tareen, was held in the committee room of the Balochistan Provincial Assembly to examine the audit papers of the irrigation department for financial years 2021-22, 2022-23, and the appropriation accounts for 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19. The committee raised concerns about the department’s inefficiency, leading to project delays and financial overruns amounting to billions of rupees.

According to Directorate General Public Relation – Govt of Balochistan, the meeting featured participation from key figures including Zabid Ali Reiki, Fazal Qadir Mandokhel, and other committee members, as well as DG Audit Shuja Ali, AG Balochistan Nasrullah Jan, and senior officers from the irrigation department. Chairman Tareen criticized the department for its lack of preparedness and questioned the expenditure on removing bushes in the hub area, highlighting that a letter to address this was delayed by two years.

The committee discussed issues of overpayment to contractors for substandard materials used in dam construction, with Fazal Qadir Mandokhel questioning the lack of recovery actions. The PAC directed the department to recover significant amounts within a month, with failure to do so resulting in disciplinary actions against responsible officers. The committee also noted a pervasive issue of fund mismanagement across departments and stressed the need for a policy to curb financial misuse. The PAC called for the irrigation department to address these irregularities and prepare formally for the next meeting within 15 days.