NA body clears proposal to raise defence budget

An 18% hike was sought citing ongoing operations against militancy.

ISLAMABAD:

The National Assembly Committee on Defence approved an 18 per cent raise in the defence budget for the fiscal year ending June 30 2012, proposing to bring the total budget to Rs521.6 billion, from Rs442 billion allocated last year.

“The recommendations to raise the defence budget were given keeping in view the requirements due to the ongoing war on terror,” said Azra Fazal Pechuho, chairperson of the committee, while talking to reporters outside the Parliament House.

The committee was briefed about the requirements of the army by concerned officials and sought a significant raise in the defence budget for the current and the next fiscal year.

Sources said the committee approved the proposal and recommended that the federal government raise the allocation to defence expenditures by 18 per cent in the next budget.

In addition to committee members, the meeting was attended by secretary defence, senior officials from the General Headquarters (GHQ) and the defence ministry.

The ongoing operation against militants in the tribal belt has escalated defence expenditures, said Pechuho while talking to reporters later. Twenty-five per cent of the defence budget is spent on purchasing defence equipment, she said, adding that the navy and air force’s expenditures have also risen significantly.

The committee thoroughly reviewed the proposal and, keeping in view the overall inflation, particularly the surge in fuel prices, felt it necessary to propose the raise in allocation to defence expenditure.

Earlier, in February 2011, India also increased its defence allocation to $36 billion, representing an 11.59 per cent growth over the previous year’s budget.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 8^th, 2011.