Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government on Monday presented a balanced budget for fiscal year 2015-16 with an outlay of Rs.487.88 billion, allocating Rs 174.88 billion for Annual Development Program (ADP) which include Rs 32.84 billion foreign assistance, besides announcing 10 per cent increase in salaries and pension and 25 per cent hike in medical allowance.
Presenting the budget on the floor of KP Assembly, Finance Minister Muzaffar Said announced the merger of 2011 and 2012 adhoc relief allowances in the basic pay besides 10 per cent increase in salaries and pension and 25 per cent in the medical allowance of the government employees per month in the budget 2015-16.
The allowances of Science and Technology and PhD have been increased from existing Rs 7,500 and Rs 2,250 respectively to 100,00 per month. He said the government in the current financial year has upgraded about 16,000 clerical staff. In this budget, he said the government has decided to give a comprehensive relief package from July 1, 2015 according to which the Provincial Civil Servants and salaries of the government employees and pension are being enhanced.
The Finance Minister announced two pay scale up gradation to employees of BPS-1 to five and one pay scale to the employee of BPS 6 to 15. The Minister also announced special compensatory allowance to all the provincial employees on the basis of their notional up-gradation from grade 16 to 17 equal of their salaries.
The decision of upgradation would not be enforced on those government employees whose services were either upgraded collectively or individually from July 1, 2010 to July 1, 2015 or they are getting 40 percent general pay or more financial benefits in terms of special salary or allowance.
KP Finance Minister Muzaffar Said said it is a balanced budget. He said that the province will receive over Rs.250.89 billion from federal divisible pool and Rs.30.14 billion for the war on terror. The federal government will also provide Rs.68 billion as hydel net profit and arrears of electricity as well as Rs.19.41 billion rupees will be received as royalty of oil and gas, he said.
The province’s owned receipts have been estimated as Rs.54.42 billion. The minister said Rs.174.88 billion have been allocated for Annual Development Programme while 911 ongoing development schemes will be completed and 614 new schemes initiated.
The minister said that Rs25 billion has been fixed for district governments, Rs3.20 billion for 39 projects of power generation, Rs5.86 billion has been reserved for 24 projects of safe drinking water, Rs1.21 billion rupees for 39 projects of tourism and sports.
He said that total estimated federal transfers are budgeted at Rs371b, of which federal tax assignment receives the largest share at Rs251b. The earlier two budgets of the present government of PTI were presented by Sirajul Haq in his capacity as senior minister for Finance in 2013 and 2014.
Muzaffar Said maintained Rs.97.54 billion have been proposed for education sector reflecting a substantial increase of 21 percent. He said Rs.29.95 billion have been proposed for health sector. The minister said special attention is being given to improve law and order and Rs.32.74 billion have proposed for police department to improve its capability.
He said special measures will be taken for welfare of poor women and children besides giving stipend to aged and special people. Earlier, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet approved budgetary proposals for fiscal year 2015-16.
Tripartite opposition parties in KP Assembly protested and also walked out the budget speech of Provincial Finance Minister Muzaffar Said Advocate. The opposition members raised anti government slogans in the house to protest the alleged rigging and irregularities in the local government elections.
