Wage earners: Rs11.1b allocated for services sector

Transport gets Rs6.2b while IT receives Rs2.4b.

LAHORE: The Punjab government, in its budget for 2012-13, has allocated Rs11.1 billion for the services sector, which is 4.44% of the annual development programme of Rs250 billion for the province.

The services sector comprises information technology, labour and human resource department, transport, emergency services and tourism. For IT, Rs2.4 billion has been earmarked, of which Rs1.363 billion will be spent on ongoing schemes and Rs1.036 billion on new schemes.

For labour and human resource, the government has set aside Rs100 million. Of this, Rs68.446 million will be spent on ongoing schemes while Rs31.554 million will go to new schemes.

The transport sector has got a handsome allocation of Rs6.2 billion, of which Rs20 million will be used for one ongoing scheme while Rs6.180 billion will be spent on five new schemes.

The provincial government, in collaboration with Turkey, will start a state-of-the-art Metro Bus service in the provincial capital Lahore. Later, the service would be expanded to all mega cities of the province.

Emergency services got a share of Rs2.1 billion in the budget, of which Rs736 million will be for five ongoing schemes and Rs1.364 billion will go to new schemes.

The tourism sector got only Rs300 million. In the area, no money will be spent on ongoing schemes while Rs124 million will go to six new schemes. The remaining Rs176 million has been reserved for block schemes.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 10^th, 2012.