Center to release Rs3.4 billion to provinces under NFC

Provinces will get Rs200 billion more than what they received last year, said Dar.

ISLAMABAD: The federal government would release Rs3.39 billion to provinces for maintaining surpluses for second and third quarters of the current financial year.

The announcement was made by the Finance Minister Ishaq Dar while presiding over a meeting a bi-annual meeting with the provincial finance ministers and secretaries (Members of NFC) to monitor implementation of National Finance Commission (NFC) Award at the Finance Ministry on Tuesday, reads a statement issued by the ministry of finance.

Earlier, Council of Common Interest (CCI) had decided that the provinces will be allowed the rate of return on their surpluses at latest T-bills rate, maintained for a minimum of three months. Under the scheme, Punjab to get Rs556.485 million, Sindh Rs2.313 million, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Rs1.2 billion and Balochistan Rs1.6 billion.

The meeting also reviewed implementation of the NFC award for the period July-December 2013 of the current financial year. It was informed that the gross divisible pool taxes amounted to Rs1 trillion and after deducting one per cent collection charges and one per cent war on terror charges for K-P, the balance net divisible pool amounted to Rs990.58 billion. Out of the total gross divisible pool taxes, the share of provinces stood at Rs569.58 billion.

The meeting was also informed that from provincial share in the divisible pool taxes for July-December, 2013, the provinces has received; Punjab Rs294.69 billion, Sindh Rs139.84 billion, KPK Rs93.27 billion and Balochistan Rs61.63 billion. However, this amounted to Rs589 billion.

During the current financial year provinces will be getting Rs200 billion more than what they received last year, said Dar. Claiming that the Federal Government does not delay payments to the provinces after completion of reconciliation process, the minister said that steps can be taken to decrease the time consumed in consultation with the provinces.

Dar also urged the provinces for early implementation of decision taken at CCI meeting regarding Federal Adjuster issue.

The minister informed the provincial representatives that in the next NFC meeting, all issues of provinces will be discussed and procedural improvements will be made in consultation with all stakeholders.

The meeting was also attended by Advisor to Chief Minister Sindh on Finance Syed Murad Ali Shah, K-P Finance Minister Siraj-ul-Haq, Finance Minister Punjab Mujtaba Shuja-ur-Rehman, senior officials of the Ministry of Finance and provincial governments.