Daily Times

LAHORE: Federal Minister for Finance and Economic Affairs Senator Ishaq Dar on Friday presented Rs 4.394 trillion national budget, which shows a 7.3 per cent-increase from the previous year, with a growth target set at 5.7 per cent.

Thursday’s Economic Survey (2015-16) revealed the government had failed to meet major economic targets, including GDP growth state that stood at 4.71per cent against a conceived target of 5.5 per cent during the outgoing fiscal year.

Eminent economist Dr Qais Aslam believes the budget is investor friendly. He, however, is of the view that the government should have proposed more direct taxes in order to increase revenue.

Talking to Daily Times, he said the government has failed to answer an important question in the budget. “How much jobs will be created?” He also proposed lowering the indirect tax bracket.

When asked what the government should have covered in Friday’s budget, Dr Qais said the government should’ve allocated more funds for the water sector. “Climate change affects agriculture. There is a need to address climate change through investment in dams.”