Daily Times

On June 13, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) will present the provincial budget for the year 2016-17 in the Punjab Assembly with a mission to uplift the living standards of common man and to put the country on path to progress. I, along with the party leadership and fellow workers, am confident that the leadership will once again evolve a strategy that will serve the best national interest. The upcoming budget has been crafted through intense deliberations with an aim to facilitate the masses and get rid of the evils faced by the country.

Keeping in mind the need to overcome unemployment and poverty and with a vision of long-term growth and prosperity of the province, government has reserved 40 percent of the budget for education and health sectors, while Rs 100 billion will be earmarked for providing subsidy to farmers during the next two years.

I am glad to represent a party whose leadership is mature enough to identify the real problems in society and is focused to facilitate the masses with honesty and integrity. Apart from bringing necessary provisions in health and education sectors, several ongoing schemes and programmes, including the Laptop Scheme to encourage and honour young students, the Ashiana Scheme to provide shelter for the needy, the Rural Road Programme for better interconnectivity between cities and villages of the province, and interest-free loans for youth so they become successful entrepreneurs will continue in the next fiscal year.

Government believes in broadening the tax net by adding the untaxed, under-taxed, and those evading the taxes into the tax net, which will not only increase government revenue, but will serve justice to the existing taxpayers as well. During the last 10 months of the ongoing fiscal year, around 35 percent revenue growth was witnessed by the Punjab Revenue Authority on GST on services collected from 59 sectors in the province. Government is focused to revamp the entire tax administration by automating it, easing the tax payment system and creating tax awareness among the masses so they could pay taxes with relative comfort.

Although Punjab is suffering from power shortage, which is not only increasing the cost of doing business in the country but is also damaging the overall progress of Pakistan, the provincial government is taking initiatives for building renewable energy plants to meet this shortage and pledges to end this menace, once and for all, by 2018. The budget for next year’s fiscal year also emphasises upon the need for development of far-flung and backward areas of the province. I am a witness to the amount of talent our rural youth possesses, and I am glad that government, as allocated in the budget, will not only provide them platforms and opportunities, but will also assist them financially by offering interest-free loans.

Under the leadership of Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, the party is confident that each penny of the public will be utilised with honesty while incriminate action will be taken against the corrupt. Over the years, the Punjab CM, through timely completion of projects, selfless services and humility, has been able to win the trust of the general public. Metro bus service was one such example that brought foreign direct investment in the country, while China is now financing the entire Orange Line Metro Train project. Such projects are preferred in order to enhance local and foreign investment, which after completion would directly benefit the common man. Punjab, as compared to other provinces, also possesses the best network of public hospitals in the shape of DHQs while full attention is being paid to further improve their performance, providing necessary medical equipment in hospitals, ensuring attendance of staff and availability of free medicines to deserving persons.

It is a fact that Pakistan of today is economically strong as compared to the past, and the PML-N government vows that Pakistan of 2018 would be more peaceful, safe, developed and prosperous. With all necessary provisions in facilitating the masses, the leadership believes that the country will only move ahead through indiscriminate accountability. The opponents should also realise that the country is standing on an important juncture of history, and this is not the time for politics of personal interests.

The writer is a graduate of LUMS and currently serves as an MPA of Punjab. She tweets at @hinaparvezbutt