Nine months into the fiscal year, and the numbers are not pretty. Official data confirms that the government spent less than half of its development budget during this period. Overall utilization under the Public Sector Development Programme reached just 41.5 percent. That means out of every rupee set aside for development, more than half is still sitting unspent. For a country struggling with infrastructure gaps and slow growth, this is a worrying sign.

Data from the Ministry of Planning and Development tells a clear story. Total PSDP spending stood at Rs. 415 billion from July to March against an annual allocation of Rs. 1 trillion. The government later reduced the budget by Rs. 90 billion to finance fuel subsidies. Even after that cut, utilization improved only marginally to 45.6 percent of the revised Rs. 910 billion envelope. So the govt uses less than half of development budget even after making the target easier to hit.

Now here is where the contrast becomes shocking. The Sustainable Development Goals Achievement Programme, which covers parliamentarians own development schemes, moved at lightning speed. Out of a revised allocation of Rs. 63.24 billion, nearly Rs. 44 billion was spent within about four months. That is roughly 70 percent utilization. While regular development projects crawled, politicians ensured their own constituencies got the money fast.

Under the government’s own quarterly release plan, PSDP spending should have reached at least 75 percent of the budget by the end of March. Based on the revised size, utilization should have been around Rs. 682 billion. Instead, the actual figure fell short by nearly Rs. 267 billion. That is a massive gap, and it raises serious questions about planning and execution.

Major infrastructure sectors performed weakly too. The National Highway Authority spent only 36 percent of its revised allocation. The power sector managed around 50 percent. But the worst numbers came from housing, health, and information technology. Spending in these critical areas ranged between a meager 13 percent and 28 percent. So while politicians fast tracked their own projects, roads remained half built, hospitals stayed underfunded, and digital infrastructure lagged behind.

The govt uses less than half of development budget in 9 months, and that is not just a statistic. It is a missed opportunity. For ordinary Pakistanis waiting for better roads, reliable electricity, and functional hospitals, the message is clear. Development is happening, but not everywhere equally. And certainly not fast enough.