Senate committee approves 18% increase in defence budget

Chairman of Defence Standing Committee says budget increased to fulfill army requirements in fight against terrorism.

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Defence on Thursday approved an 18 per cent raise in the defence budget for the next financial year.

Speaking to the media after a committee meeting at the Parliament House in Islamabad, chairperson Dr Azra Afzal said the increment had been made to fulfill the requirements of the armed forces in the fight against terrorism.

Earlier, Ministry of Defence officials had briefed the committee about the proposed budget and had recommended the 18 per cent increase.

The previous defence budget stood at Rs 442 billion, accounting for 13.56 per cent of the Rs 3.259 trillion budget outlay. The new figures are expected to cross Rs500 billion.

Correction: April 2, 2011

Due to an error, the percentage of the defence budget as part of the budget outlay for 2010-11 had been incorrectly stated. It has now been corrected.