HYDERABAD, July 9: The Sindh Taraqi Passand Party has held the government responsible for the loss of 750 lives in Balochistan and Sindh during rains and flash floods and displacement of tens of thousands of people.

A meeting of the central committee of the party was held here on Monday under the chairmanship of Dr Hameed Memon, which took into consideration the situation arising out of torrential rains and flash floods.

It was observed that the widespread devastations had taken place in Balochistan and Sindh due to government’s negligence.

It observed that no less than two million people had been affected in Sindh and Balochistan and thousands of villages inundated and standing crops on tens of thousands of acres destroyed.

It said that while tens of thousands of people were living under the open sky, the rulers and bureaucrats were busy in photo sessions and had taken no practical steps to mitigate the sufferings of the victims. It said the announcement of financial aid of few millions was a cruel joke with the affected people.

The meeting demanded that all affected areas should be declared as calamity hit, growers be exempted from agricultural taxes and the affected people given an aid of rupees-one-million per head.

It said that the government should convene an international donors’ conference for the rehabilitation of people of Sindh and Balochistan. The meeting decided to set up medical camps at Larkana, Qambar-Shahdadkot, Dadu and other affected areas to provide medical treatment.

On the Lal Masjid issue, the meeting held establishment responsible.

JAMSHORO BUDGET: District Nazim Jamshoro, Malik Asad Sikandar on Monday presented tax-free annual budget of the district government for 2007-08 with an outlay of Rs1,941.880 million showing surplus of Rs26.854 million.

Convenor and Naib Nazim of the Council, Abdul Hameed Buledi presided the budget session which was approved by the council after some discussion.

On income side, the opening balance showed an amount of Rs248.011 million, single line budget sent by the Sindh government stood at Rs1,365.982 million, income from octroi and zila tax estimated at Rs34.557 million, income from taxes and arrears at Rs5.902 million, expected share from Dadu district at Rs120.033 million, the SDSSP Rs52.970 million and the National Programme for Improvement of Watercourses (NPIW) Rs114.405 million.

Salaries and other expenses accounted for Rs121.050 million.

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