ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has approved a Rs90.2 billion surplus budget for the fiscal year 2025-26, with a major chunk allocated for development and tourism-related projects.

The budget with a focus on development projects and tourism initiatives was approved in a meeting of the CDA Board presided over by Chairman Muhammad Ali Randhawa here on Wednesday.

According to budget documents, the total outlay of the budget is Rs90.2bn, with Rs47.7bn expected from selffinance, including auction of commercial and residential plots and Rs23.5bn from varioustaxes. Besides this, the CDA is starting its financial year with a Rs17.1bn opening balance and Rs1.8bn funds transferred from Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad, which shows Rs8.2bn surplus amount.

The documents show that the CDA has earmarked Rs17bn for several tourism-related projects, including a zipline, a safari park and construction of a cricket stadium near Sector D-12.

The CDA has also allocated Rs4.5bn for sewerage and water projects.

The budget also includes funds for major infrastructure projects, such as the T Chowk Flyover and Shaheen Chowk Flyover and extension of Margalla Road from GT Road to M-1 (Motorway-I). An amount of Rs2bn each has been allocated for T Chowk and Shaheen Chowk flyovers whereas the CDA plans to spend Rsibn on the Margalla Road Extension Project.

The CDA had approved Rs91bn budget for the previous fiscal year, ending on June 30,2025, but it later revised it down to Rs54bn. The CDA`s finance wing had collected receipts Rs66.5bn in the previous fiscal year.

Sources said the CDA board members discussed two possible routes for zipline -one from Shakarparian to Marghazar Zoo and the other from Damn-i-Koh to Marghazar Zoo. The board members were informed that a consultant would finalise the route.

The sources said that allocations had also been made in the budget for preparing a feasibility study for launching an electric tram service in the capital.

During a meeting between the CDA Board members and officials from the National Radio Telecommunication Corporation (NRTC) on July 24, the CDA chairman had directed the concerned officials to expedite the feasibility report for introducing a tram service on various routes in Islamabad. He had instructed the concerned officers to finalise the feasibility report, particularly focusing on financial sustainability.The proposed trams would feature multiple compartments to accommodate more passengers and would be designed to be accessible for differentlyabled individuals and women.

During the briefing, the participants had been informed that a feasibility report covering financial, operational and business models was already being prepared. Clear timelines and operational goals for the tram project were also decided in the meeting.

According to a press release, the CDA board also approved the outstanding auction of CDA`s commercial plots and the appointment of an audit firm to improve the Authority`s financial management system.

The participants of the meeting were informed the CDA had so far successfully auctioned eight commercial plots and four shops, generating Rs19.56bn in the year 2025.

Furthermore, during the bidding process from July 15 to 17, plots and shops were sold out through a transparent process at prices overall exceeding themarket value by 11 per cent, with some plots selling for 33 per cent above the reserved price.

Despite imposing strict conditions, including reduction in the installment period from two years to one year and decrease in the full payment discount from 10pc to 5pc, the auction process of the commercial plots and shops proved successful.

The meeting approved the fresh tendering process for outsourcing solid waste management services for urban and rural areas. The CDA Board decided to invite new tenders from nationally and internationally reputed firms and divide waste collection system into different packages.

The CDA chairman ordered further improvement in waste transfer stations and dumping sites to make them more efficient.

The board members also approved a three-month extension of the contract with Rawalpindi Waste Management Company (RWMC) for waste transportation.