Charsadda Sports RTI Response Arrives After 20 Months, Rs6.66 Million Spent but No Head-Wise Breakdown

 

Musarrat Ullah Jan , KikxNow Digital Creator

PESHAWAR: The District Sports Office Charsadda has provided a response to a Right to Information (RTI) request concerning sports activities, funds, expenditures and registered sports clubs after a delay of approximately 20 months and 27 days. However, the official response does not provide a head-wise or event-wise breakdown of Rs6,665,799 reportedly spent on sports activities.

According to the document, the RTI application was filed on November 12, 2024, while the response was provided after the financial year 2026-27 had already begun. This means the applicant waited almost 21 months for information concerning expenditure during the financial year 2024-25.

According to the District Sports Office Charsadda, a total of 21 sports events and tournaments were organised in the district during financial year 2024-25.

The events included cricket, hockey, football, swimming, badminton, cycling, kabaddi, archery, karate and table tennis, along with various coaching and training camps.

The official response states that a total of 2,747 teams participated in these activities.

The document further states that Rs6,665,799 was allocated for sports activities during financial year 2024-25, while the same amount, Rs6,665,799, was reported as expenditure.

The District Sports Office has also reported that 163 sports clubs are active and registered in Charsadda.

The district generated Rs408,150 in revenue from sports activities during the same financial year, according to the official response.

Regarding coaches, the department reported that eight sanctioned BPS-16 coaching posts are vacant in Charsadda.

However, despite the lengthy delay in providing the information, the response does not explain how the Rs6.66 million was spent.

It does not specify how much was spent on individual sports such as cricket, hockey, football or swimming, how much was spent on tournaments, coaching and training camps, or how much was spent on sports equipment, food, transportation and other expenditure heads.

The response also does not provide a detailed picture of the 163 registered sports clubs.

It remains unclear from the information provided which sports these clubs represent, how many of them are actually active, how many participated in government-organised events, and what facilities or support they received from the District Sports Office after registration.

This raises another important question: if 163 sports clubs are officially registered and active in the district, were they provided financial assistance, sports equipment, coaching, training opportunities or other government facilities from the public sports budget?

Similarly, although the department has reported 21 sports events and various coaching and training camps, the response does not provide event-wise expenditure, camp-wise expenditure, participation records or details of which registered clubs benefited from these activities.

Another question concerns the delay itself.

Why was an RTI request seeking information about financial year 2024-25 expenditure answered only after financial year 2026-27 had begun?

According to the official document, the response was submitted in the context of proceedings before the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Information Commission and was also provided to the applicant.

Reporting a total expenditure of Rs6,665,799 establishes how much money was reportedly spent, but it does not establish where the money was spent, which events received funding, under which expenditure heads the money was used, or who ultimately benefited from it.

The official response itself refers to 163 registered clubs, 21 sports events, 2,747 participating teams and various training and coaching camps.

The logical next question is therefore straightforward:

Where is the complete head-wise and event-wise expenditure record for the Rs6,665,799?

For public accountability, the total amount alone is not enough. A meaningful assessment of public spending requires the underlying expenditure records, beneficiaries, bills, vouchers, event-wise statements and supporting documents.

Until those records are disclosed, the official figures provide only a partial picture of how public funds were used for sports in Charsadda.

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