Enhancing revenue: NA panel directs FBR to ‘do more’

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly's Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue on Tuesday directed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to take further measures to increase its revenues for socio-economic development of the country.

Qaisar Ahmed Sheikh, while chairing a committee meeting here, said the committee had repeatedly directed the FBR to bring reforms to enhance revenue from property, agriculture, and trade and industry sectors.



Senior Member of FBR's Inland Revenue Policy Muhammad Iqbal informed the committee that on the committee's directives, the Board had taken a number of measures to improve the taxation system and increase the number of taxpayers.

He said close monitoring was being done at three zones of Islamabad, Karachi, and Lahore and so far over 20,000 notices had been issued to non-filer residents of the three cities on the basis of their data of property, vehicles and utility bills.    Regarding valuation of property in various parts of the country, Muhammad Iqbal said although it was a provincial matter and provinces were responsible for the registration of the properties of individuals, but the FBR also had conducted valuations of properties according to market value.

Finance Secretary Arif Ahmed Khan said that the government was designing a plan to provide loans to small farmers having maximum 12.5 acres of land at concessionary mark-up rates of 9.9 per cent.

Some two million small farmers would benefit from the scheme, he added.



The committee chairman, however, observed that even the concessionary rate was high and it should be further reduced.

Earlier, MNA Asad Umar expressed his dissatisfaction over the non-serious attitude of officials from the ministries concerned, who, he said, attended the committee meeting without proper preparation.

The meeting was also attended by MNAs Rana Shamim Ahmed Khan, Isphandyar Bhandara, Khalida Mansoor, Dr Shezza Mansab Ali Khan Kharral, Dr Nafisa Shah, Syed Mustafa Mehmud, and Abdul Rasheed Gondal.