Budget AJK 2017-18: Development expenditure doubles in Rs94.41b budget

Opposition decries ‘PML-N-worker-friendly’ budget, ‘usurping’ public money

MUZAFFARABAD: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government on Thursday unveiled a Rs94.41 billion tax-free budget for the fiscal year 2017-18.

The budget was presented by AJK Finance Minister Dr Najeeb Naqi during the budget session in the AJK Legislative Assembly.

A major chunk of the budget, over 75 per cent or Rs71.13 billion, would be spent to meet non-development expenditures of the ministers, secretaries and other government employees in an area smaller than the Chitral district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.



This is up by 15.66 per cent from the Rs61.5 billion non-development budget last year. Curiously, this year’s non-development budget is almost equal to the region’s total budget for the fiscal year 2016-17.

The large allocation has been made in light of proposals to give a 10 per cent raise to serving and retired employees of the region.

The minimum wage in the region has also been increased to Rs15,000 per month.

The government has also set aside Rs741.71 million for relief and rehabilitation.



Development funds

With an eye on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) led AJK government has more than doubled funds allocated for development in the valley from Rs10.729 in the fiscal year 2016-17 to Rs23.28 billion in the fiscal year 2017-18.

In this regards, the government also expects to receive around Rs1.8 billion in foreign aid.

The main chunk of the development budget, around Rs9.04 billion will be spent on building roads under the Communication and Works Department, accounting for 38.83 per cent of the total development budget. This is up from Rs4.499 billion which were allocated for the department last year.



Generating power from hydel power projects has also been accorded top priority with RsRs3.52 billion allocated for the power sector. This has tripled from last year when only Rs1.24 billion were allocated for the sector.

While the AJK government has yet to complete its promise of holding local government elections the government has tripled allocation for local government and rural development, from Rs650 million in the last fiscal year to Rs2.005 billion for the fiscal year 2017-18.

Terming education as one of the key sectors, Finance Minister Dr Naqi said that they had earmarked Rs1.7 billion for it in FY 2017-18, an increase of 33.86 per cent from the Rs1.27 billion allocated in the previous fiscal year.

Moreover, the AJK government has earmarked Rs1.525 billion for the physical planning and housing sector.

Health, Dr Naqi said, would get Rs769 million in FY 2017-18, up 87.56 per cent from the Rs410 million allocated last year.

Forestry got a nominal bump from Rs425 million last year to Rs550million this year.

Agriculture has received a 37.25 per cent hike from Rs357 last year to Rs490 million this year.

The government has allocated Rs380 million for industries in the region.

With the government turning its focus on tourism, it has increased the budget for the sector by 56.25 per cent to Rs250million.

An allocation of Rs225 million has been made for information technology, Rs200 million for sports youth and culture, Rs174 million for research and development, Rs135 million for development authorities, Rs100 million for rehabilitation, Rs100 million for social welfare and women development, Rs60million for environment, Rs40 million for information and media development, while transport has been given Rs20million in the fiscal year 2017-18.

The government has set aside Rs100 million for the development of civil defence, apart from Rs120.54 million in the non-development budget.

The Prime Minister Community Infrastructure Programme, which had been started with an allocation of Rs997 million at the expense of development budget for different departments in 2016-17, would be continued in 2017-18 with Rs1.3 billion set aside for it.



Revenue

The AJK government hopes to earn Rs71.13 billion from various departments and sources  including Rs6.3 billion in taxes, Rs99.09 million in land record and settlement, Rs220.29 million in stamps, Rs25 million from the AJK Transport Authority, Rs5 million from minerals, Rs19.92 million from tourism, Rs14.3 billion from the Kashmir Council, Rs26 billion as share of federal taxes, Rs13 billion as grant-in-aid for revenue deficit, Rs1.3 billion in water usage charges of Mangla and Rs 4.27 billion in adjustment overdraft.

Not people-friendly

The opposition parties in AJK, meanwhile, balked at the budget proposals.

The leader of the Opposition in the AJK Legislative Assembly Chaudhry Muhammad Yaseen termed the budget as one for PML-N workers and not for the people of AJK.

“Specific ministries have been given immense funds while the health and education sectors have been completely ignored as per their merit and requirement,” Yaseen said.

Yaseen, who belongs to the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), along with the other three opposition parties accused the PML-N government of plundering public money under the Prime Minister Community Infrastructure Programme.

“The PM’s Community Infrastructure Programme was started to feed PML-N workers. Under this ‘political’ programme, Rs970 million of taxpayers’ money has been embezzled during the last six months by the ruling elite,” Yaseen alleged.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Parliamentary Leader Abdul Majid Khan said that the incumbent government had first scrapped the jobs quota for Kashmiri refugees and now they have not raised the daily allowances of these refugees who had migrated from Indian Occupied Kashmir to AJK.

“How shameful is it for PML-N that the salaries of the prime minister and ministers have increased by 200 per cent but they could not earmark a 50 per cent raise in daily allowances for Kashmiri refugees who have been living in miserable condition in refugee camps. What kind of message does AJK PM Farooq Haider want to give to the brothers and sisters in Indian Occupied Kashmir,” Khan asked.

The PTI leader Khan further said that the present status in AJK is due to Kashmiri refugees and pushing them to the wall would be counterproductive.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 16^th, 2017.