The federal government has announced that the issue of creating new provinces will be debated in the National Assembly and Senate in October.
Speaking to the media, Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said that neither the National Assembly nor the Senate would hold sessions in September. However, parliamentary sessions are scheduled for October, during which the issue of new provinces will be taken up for debate.
He said that the Parliament House is the appropriate forum for discussing the creation of new provinces.
Regarding Islamabad, the federal minister clarified that the capital is not being turned into a new province. Instead, the government is considering a new governance model for the federal capital.
He said there had been no proposal to make Islamabad a separate province.
Earlier, reports had suggested that a new administrative system could be introduced in Islamabad in place of the existing local government structure, with a 27-member assembly and either a chief minister or mayor serving as the chief executive.
The announcement means the broader issue of creating new provinces is expected to receive a formal discussion in Parliament in October.
