Pak's nuclear prog faces budget cuts; scientists upset

I / Islamabad May 1, 2009, 13:45 IST

Pakistan's nuclear programme is facing severe budget cuts that have hampered several "core classified projects" and upset scientists, who believe the move is tantamount to an unannounced rollback.  

Several development programmes of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, including some classified ones, have been slowed down and some even halted as the government has imposed an "unprecedented squeeze".  

The classified segment of PAEC's development budget saw a cut of almost 35% while only 15% of the budget for unclassified development programmes has been released, a source told The News Daily. T

he budget cuts have affected over 30 projects.  Senior nuclear scientists and officials holding key positions in the nuclear programme are "extremely upset" with the situation and fear that the cuts are tantamount to a "quiet unannounced rollback" and will "badly damage the programme", the source said.  PAEC member (administration) Maj Gen Khalid Mushtaq conceded there had been a belt-tightening because of the global recession and the emphasis was on judicious use of available resources.  

He denied there had been any compromise on the nuclear programme and its development. The resource crunch, he said, should not be interpreted in a manner that may show that there is "any compromise on the programme".

Strategic organisations get less than 0.5% of the GDP and officials running the nuclear programme and strategic organisations are "extremely upset and do not know why this is being don", the report said. 

Some key officials of PAEC, sources said, had resigned to protest the government's "strange attitude".  

This attitude has "demoralised and de-motivated" officials handling classified projects, sources said.  

"This is like creating hurdles in the progress and development of the country's nuclear programme," one source said, adding no government has ever done what was being done by the current administration.  

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani recently approved a proposal to scale down budgetary allocations for the Public Sector Development Programme by over Rs 118 billion for fiscal 2008-09 because of a serious financial crunch.  

Under the IMF's prescriptions, the government is taking steps to curtail fiscal deficit within the agreed limit of 4.2% of GDP or Rs 562 billion and compromising development expenditure. This situation is also affecting the nuclear programme, the report said.