For years, Siraiki people have been told that at least 35 percent of Punjab’s development money will be earmarked for our 13 districts—Multan, Bahawalpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Muzaffargarh, Rahim Yar Khan, Bahawalnagar, Rajanpur, Layyah, Khanewal, Vehari, Lodhran, Bhakkar and Mianwali.
I. The pledge and the “ring‑fence”
* Annual Development Plan Guideline 2024‑25 (page 4) says: “35 % funds must be allocated for southern Punjab districts.”
* Finance Department Notification 4 July 2019 (FD(FR)II‑5/82) formally “ring‑fenced” development funds for the three South‑Punjab divisions (Multan, Bahawalpur, Dera Ghazi Khan). It was hailed as a firewall—money booked for the south could never be siphoned north.
II. Why the promise is hard to see in today’s budget books
* No single line in the ADP shows the South‑Punjab total.
* Many projects list “Punjab” or leave the district column blank, hiding province‑wide envelopes.
* There is no hard budget code for South Punjab, so funds can still be re‑appropriated.
* No quarterly public report tracks what was actually spent in the south.
III. What this opacity costs us
Poverty & deprivation: Multidimensional poverty in the south is 33 %, almost double Lahore Division. Stunting is 44 % in DG Khan vs 31 % Punjab average (MICS‑2018).
Education: Only Rs 1.8 billion in district‑tagged Higher‑Education projects—≈ 2.7 % of the province’s education development budget.
Health: District‑named hospital projects come to Rs 15 billion (18 %) of Specialized Health Care, unless you assume a population share of province‑wide schemes.
IV. A reminder of what a separate province could mean
Economist Aad Saeed makes a calculation for the share of the prospective Siraiki Province in the NFC award. As per his calculation, if South Punjab were its own province today, it would command roughly 15 % of the national divisible pool—about Rs 600 billion this year—instead of waiting for Lahore to honour a guideline.
V. How to make the 35 % ring‑fence real inside Punjab
1. Create a stand‑alone grant: “Demand No‑36 — South Punjab ADP”.
2. Tag every project code with “SP” or “GP”.
3. Publish the Planning‑Portal split next to each scheme.
4. Launch a quarterly dashboard showing district utilisation.
5. Embed the 35 % clause in the next Provincial Finance Commission Award.
VI. Where you come in
* Ask your MPA: “Where is the South‑Punjab annex in this year’s ADP?”
* Demand Finance upload the South‑Punjab release order.
* Share this note. The louder we are, the harder it is to keep our 35 % in the shadows.
We Siraiki people are 33 % of Punjab province. We ask for 35 % of its development hope—printed, coded, and delivered. Until that happens, the case for our own province only grows stronger.