Daily Times

QUETTA: Balochistan’s record high deficit budget with a total outlay of Rs 328.502 billion was presented by the Adviser to the Chief Minister on Finance Sardar Aslam Bizenjo on Thursday in the Balochistan Assembly.

The budget deficit has jumped from Rs 36 billion during the current year to Rs 52 billion for the financial year 2017-18, according to the details made public.

Bizenjo informed the House that Rs 86.01 billion had been allocated for the public sector development program, whereas an allocation of Rs 242.49 billion had been made for non-developmental expenditures for the financial year 2017-18.

The government has allocated Rs 45.79 billion for the education sector, within which the non-development budget has received Rs 35 billion, an 18 percent increase as compared to the current fiscal year.

The Balochistan Education Endowment Fund has been increased to Rs 8 billion from current year’s Rs 6 billion. “14,000 students will be given scholarships from middle to university level to get quality education,” Bizenjo announced. An amount of Rs 18.31 billion has been allocated for the health sector in the province.

An amount of Rs 34.83 billion has been allocated for law and order and safety affairs. A further Rs 1 billion have been allocated for the victims of terrorism in the budget. “We have defeated terrorists and terrorism by 95 per cent,” Bizenjo told the House in his budget speech. “Rs 326.5 million are allocated for the purchase of modern and new weapons to defeat terrorists,” the adviser added.

He also informed the House that Rs 250 million were allocated for the members of the legal fraternity to help them attain bar-at-law degrees from abroad in the aftermath of the August 8 civil hospital bombing. “Young lawyers will be sent to London through official support to bridge the gulf created after the August 8 tragedy,” Bizenjo said.

On August 8, a suicide bomber targeted the emergency services ward at Quetta’s Civil Hospital, killing at least 74 people and leaving scores injured. Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) splinter group, Jamaat-ul-Ahrar (JuA), had claimed responsibility for the bombing which occurred at the gates of the building housing the emergency ward.

In an unusual instance, the adviser’s address continued uninterrupted as the opposition chose to silently listen to him.

The salaries and pensions of government employees are hiked by 10%. Furthermore, 7,971 vacancies were also announced during the budget speech by the finance adviser. Minimum wage for labourers was slated to be increased from Rs14,000 to Rs15,000 in the province, Bizenjo claimed.

The province would get Rs 202.69 billion from the federal government under the divisible pool and the province would generate Rs 12 billion through its own resources.