News
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Punjab presents Rs 585 billion tax-free budget* Plan envisages 50% raise in govt employees’ wages, 25% decrease in ministers’ earnings
* Rs 21bn for subsidiesBy Hussnain Kashif and Shabbir Sarwar
LAHORE: Punjab Finance Minister Tanveer Ashraf Kaira presented a Rs 585.66 billion balanced budget for the fiscal year 2010-11 in the provincial assembly on Monday, announcing a 50 percent raise in the salaries for over one million government employees and a 25 percent deduction in the salaries of provincial ministers.
Kairae told the House that the government had partially succeeded in improving the administrative and financial performance in the province, and the GDP growth rate target had now been raised to 4.25% for the forthcoming fiscal.
The minister said that the Punjab government had decided to cut the expenditures of the Chief Minister’s Secretariat by 25 percent, while the salaries of ministers too would be reduced by 25 percent. He announced a 50 percent ad hoc increase in the salaries of public sector employees, except for those who had already been given salary raises or any allowance equal to, or more than, their salary. A 20 percent increase in the pensions for those who had retired before 2001, and a 15 percent increase for those who had retired after 2001, was also announced.
Kaira told the House that the government had estimated revenue receipts at Rs 558.38 billion and would receive Rs 435 billion through the federal divisible pool under the seventh National Finance Commission Award. He said that Punjab would receive Rs 51 billion under the head of federal shares, Rs 47 billion under the head of general sales tax on services, Rs 12.59 billion as foreign projects assistance, Rs 12 billion under the head of privatisation receipts, and is expected to receive Rs 680 million under the head of federal grants.
Allocations in the budget, the minister said, include Rs 193.50 billion for development, Rs 386.787 billion as revenue expenditures, Rs 3.04 billion in net public accounts, Rs 328 million in net capital accounts and Rs 2 billion as an additional grant for the energy sector.
Kaira said that Rs 49.2 billion had been allocated for the police – a 13 percent increase from the outgoing fiscal. He said the education sector would receive Rs 53.99 billion, an increase of 12 percent, while a 16 percent addition had been made to the allocation for the health sector, bringing the amount to Rs 43.80 billion for the forthcoming fiscal.
Kaira said that the Punjab government would continue its pro-poor subsidies and had allocated Rs 21 billion in the budget to facilitate the people against the continuing price hike in the province. He said that Rs 13 billion had been proposed for subsidy on wheat, Rs 5 billion for the ‘Sasti Roti’ scheme, Rs two billion for the Ramzan package and Rs one billion for public transport.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk