Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Muhammad Sohail Afridi has said that Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has assured to update the National Finance Commission (NFC), under which the merged districts will also be included, which is good news for the people of the province.
Talking to the media after the National Economic Council meeting, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Muhammad Sohail Afridi said that the case of the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was presented in a comprehensive manner in the meeting and a clear stand was taken to protect the constitutional, financial and developmental rights of the province.
He said that the Prime Minister has assured that regular meetings will be held to update the NFC award within 180 days, however, if consensus cannot be reached within the stipulated period, a summary will be sent to the President and the NFC award will be updated through a presidential order.
The Chief Minister said that the financial share of the merged districts will be included in the new NFC award, which is a big good news for the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, especially the merged areas.
Muhammad Sohail Afridi said that the proposed cuts in the Accelerated Implementation Program (AIP) of the merged districts have improved considerably after the negotiations, however, the provincial government has also strongly demanded further improvement.
He expressed hope that further improvements will be made in the Annual Development Program and AIP of the merged districts so that the fruits of development reach the people there in a timely manner.
Referring to Article 151 of the Constitution, the Chief Minister said that it is the constitutional responsibility of the federation to ensure free movement of essential goods, however, if this article is not possible to implement, then this provision of the Constitution should be abolished and the provinces should be allowed to adopt their own policies.
He said that under the agreement reached with PASSCO, 175,000 tons of wheat will be provided to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at a fixed rate and the federal government has assured that the price of wheat will not be increased.
Muhammad Sohail Afridi said that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government is making the highest investment in establishing law and order across the country and since October 5, 2025, more than Rs 30 billion has been spent on increasing the capacity of the police, Counter-Terrorism Department and Special Branch.
He said that steps will be taken to further strengthen the police, CTD and Special Branch so that the lives and property of the people can be ensured.
The Chief Minister said that working relations with the federation will be taken forward keeping in mind the interests of the province and the people, participation in NEC and NFC meetings is indispensable for protecting the rights of the province and public interests.
He clarified that education, health and law and order are the top priorities of the provincial government, and welfare projects like Ehsaas Program, Shelter Homes, Zamin Kor and No One Sleeps Hungry are also being successfully implemented.
He said that Sehat Card is a revolutionary project of Chairman Imran Khan through which free medical treatment is being provided to every citizen of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Chief Minister Sohail Afridi said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is contributing about 45 percent to the total forests of Pakistan, 26.7 percent of the total area of the province is covered by forests.
He said that a special fund will be allocated for further promotion of forests and instead of cutting down trees grown on private land, the provincial government itself will buy them and pay the owners so that plantation can be encouraged.
Sohail Afridi added that the government will provide all possible facilities to people planting trees on barren land so that the area of forests in the province can be further increased.