ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Devolution noted on Wednesday that the federal bureaucracy was hindering the devolution process despite constitutional requirements, and called upon the provinces to raise their voices for their rights.

The committee, held in the Parliament House, was chaired by Senator Hasil Khan Bizenjo, who said most of the issues were related to revenue generating sectors, and that devolution was being delayed so higher revenues would continue to flow into federal ministries.

`We need to identify the issues first, and then we will try to find reasons for delays in devolution,` Mr Bizenjo said.

`After that, we will call the relevant divisions to ensure that devolution is implemented,` he added.

Retired Col Tahir Mashhadi of the MQM said the federal bureaucracy has been able to delay the implementation of devolution for the last six years and waspossibly misleading respective governments as well.

The committee was informed that many subjects were plagued by confusion, and the federal government was not doing enough to clarify several issues.

While briefing the committee, Senate Secretariat officials said many functions have been retained by the federal government by establishing new ministries after the former ministries were abolished.

Mr Bizenjo and Senator Mohammad Usman Khan of the Pakhtunlchwa Milli Awami Party also noted that the matter of establishing a board for the Gwadar Port has been delayed by the federal government.

`The world over, even in Dubai, the municipal authorities maintain ports and it was agreed that the chairman and half of the board of the Gwadar Port will be from Balochistan,` Mr Bizenjo said.

Among the key issues between provinces and the federal government is the joint ownership of oil and gas exploration ventures.

`Since no mechanism has been devised,there are complaints from Sindh and Balochistan that the federal government was paying less royalty to them against oil and gas produced in the respective provinces,` Rabeea Anwar said.

She said the provinces and the federal government are also in disagreement over the Higher Education Commission (HEC).

While education has been devolved, the federal HEC does not recognise the HECs of Punjab and Sindh on the grounds that the 2002 law empowers them with the same functions.

`The 18th Amendment was passed in 2010, but the HEC law of 2002 has not been repealed by parliament until now, Ms Anwar said.

Among the other controversial subjects is foreign borrowing by the provinces the finance ministry notification in this regard was very weak.

Punjab and Sindh have also demanded the devolution of the Evacuee Trust Property Board, but according to an agreement with India, the federal government is responsible for property belonging to Hindus and Sikhs who left after 1947.

Punjab is demanding the devolution of the Workers Welfare Fund, which is worth Rs81 billion, on the basis of the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award, while Sindh demands its devolution on the basis of its source of generation and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan want the federal government to maintain it as it is.

Cabinet Secretary Nadeem Hassan Asif acknowledged that several functions remain with the federal government even after the devolution of 17 ministries. He said the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock has been devolved but some of its functions are with the new Ministry of National Food Security.

The ministries created after devolution are the ministries of national health services, climate change, human resource development, capital administration and development division and inter-provincial coordination.

`So this means that the federal government has encroached upon the devolved ministries and the rights of the provinces,` Mr Bizenjo said. The cabinet secretary was directed to write a letter to the relevant ministries and divisions to explain their position over the matter of delaying devolution.