ISLAMABAD, Jan 6: The Executive Council of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) meets here on Wednesday to approve over Rs123 billion worth of 18 new projects, officials told Dawn here on Tuesday.

Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz will preside over the Ecnec meeting. The officials said another meeting of Ecnec would take place by the end of this month to prepare ground work for reallocation of Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for the current year in view of the physical progress made so far.

Water and power sector projects would dominate the Ecnec meeting on Wednesday. Five projects in the water sector and three power sector projects followed by education and health sectors with two projects each would come up for consideration by the meeting.

Ecnec would take up Rs28bn project for rehabilitation and modernization of barrages in Punjab. This includes repair of eight barrages, namely Jinnah, Taunsa, Balloki, Sulemanki, Trimmu, Islam, Punjnad and Khanki.

The project also includes modernization of six barrages for long-term benefits. These include Jinnah, Islam, Sulemanki, Taunsa, Khanki and Balloki. Punjab has 21 canal systems spread over an area of over 23m acres. Its barrages have outlived their designed life period. Some of these barrages are as old as 100 years.

Another ambitious project for Punjab is the Rs31.24bn Lining of Irrigation Channels. The Keyal Khawar Hydropower project worth Rs17bn would also be approved by Ecnec.

Two projects are related to Pat Feeder project. These include Rs700m construction of 43 new minors in the Pat Feeder and remodelling of 49 minors, while another project worth Rs2.24bn extension of the Pat Feeder Canal to use Indus water in Balochistan.

A Rs13bn project for lining of minors and distributary channels in Sindh is also expected to be approved by the meeting. Ecnec is expected to approve Rs21.5bn family planning and primary healthcare facilities, besides a project, namely Gilgit Institute of Radiotherapy. Ecnec will approve Rs1.95bn for hiring computer science teachers, Rs402m for urban water supply scheme in Mirpur Khas.