Provincial Finance Minister Makhdoom Hashim Jawan Bakht said on Wednesday that the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government has presented its first budget for fiscal year 2018-2019 which shows us the real picture of the provincial economic situation. He was addressing the post budget press conference where Provincial Law Minister Raja Basharat, Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid, Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan and officers of concerned departments were also present. The Punjab finance minister said that despite severe financial crisis left by the previous regime, the present government was not going to impose any new tax in the current budget rather prefer to improve tax collection mechanism through effective reforms, adding that PTI reform agenda was people-friendly and centric on people of Pakistan. To a question, he said that the current FY budget would not only dispel the negative effects of fiscal indiscipline, corruption and malpractices of the past, but would also pave way for real development and prosperity of the masses. Punjab’s development planning for the next five years was being done keeping in view the factors including provision of basic amenities to the masses of food, education, health, employment and homes. The other major aspect of ‘change’ was promotion of the industry and expansion of trade, which was possible through Ease of Doing Business, public-private partnership, control over expenditures and reformation of tax collection system, he said and asserted that this aspect would get the homeland rid of the menace of heavy debt burden. To another query, the minister said that in the past, such programmes were initiated in the name of mega projects which were actually meant for personal publicity of the former rulers, citing that claimants of public service had termed Orange Line Metro Train as their pride but the project had now become a liability. The former government declared that OLMT would cost Rs 165 billion, contrary to the fact that the project seemed to be incomplete even after Rs 250 billion were spent on it. The PTI government would, however, complete this economically non-viable project, since the past government had wasted billions of rupees of public exchequer on the OLMT, he maintained. The provincial finance minister assured that PTI government would not resort to initiate mere cosmetic developmental programmes but make outcome-oriented and evidence-based planning so that people could realise and enjoy the fruit of real change. To a question, the finance minister said that the present government was putting in place effective measures to ensure equitable distribution of resources and provision of equal opportunities to the people across the province to end regional disparity and alleviate poverty especially in far-flung areas. Exposing the Rs 635 billion Annual Development Plan (ADP) in the FY 2017-18, he said that its actual utilisation remained at Rs 411 billion while one-third of the past government’s ADP was contained to the budget document only. He said that Punjab had always been considered as a financially stable province but all at once, it was faced with Rs 94 billion fiscal deficit, which in fact, entailed a long tale of corruption, embezzlement and fiscal indiscipline committed by the former rulers. At the end of the previous FY, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government’s borrowings had surpassed the figure of Rs 1,100 billion, he maintained. To a question, he said that on the request of the federal government, an amount of Rs 148 billion had been allocated as surplus, keeping in view the severe financial crunch in the country, asserting that this amount would be retained with Punjab government and would be available in the next budget for development plan, for which a comprehensive strategy was being chalked out. He mentioned that human development and social sectors were the top priorities of the PTI government and 100-Day Reform Agenda announced by Prime Minister Imran Khan was the linchpin of the government’s planning. The 100-Day Plan would primarily ensure improvement in governance and social sectors, revival of economic growth, agricultural development and conservation of water resources, adding that national security and legislative reforms were also its basic elements. The PTI government, he said believed in a strong and comprehensive local governments system and intended to introduce revolutionary system in this regard for which legislation was being made speedily. Makhdoom Hashim Jawan Bakhat mentioned that despite fiscal constraints, the present government has decided not to impact or tax the sectors which affected the economic growth. Published in Daily Times, October 18th 2018.