Balochistan budget: Some 5,000 new job vacancies to be created

Top aide says the govt has distributed Rs1.300b among the families of terror victims

QUETTA: A senior aide to the Balochistan chief minister on finance has unveiled a budget of Rs243.528 billion for the fiscal year 2015-16 with a budget deficit estimated at Rs26.1 million.

As expected, merely Rs54.505 billion was allocated for the development sector while the total development expenditure is estimated at Rs189.023 billion. Power cuts interrupted the budget speech of the adviser to Balochistan CM, Mir Khalid Langove.

This is a clear reflection of the serious issue of power outages in the province.



Of the allocated PSDP budget of Rs54.505 billion, education, health, law and order, irrigation, communication, water supply and energy sectors were given priorities.

According to documents available with The Express Tribune, revenue expenditure was estimated to be Rs68.549 billion and capital expenditure estimated to be Rs20.474 billion. “The government will create over 5,000 vacancies during this fiscal year,” Langove, adviser to chief minister on finance, told reporters.

The documents stated that allocation from the budget for general public services was Rs28.751 billion. For public order safety affairs the amount of Rs26.958 billion was allocated. Education affairs and services received Rs38.369 billion, health affairs & services Rs15.482 billion and economic affairs Rs39.044 billion. Housing and community amenities received Rs11.682 billion of the total budget.

Balochistan followed the footprints of the federal government by increasing the salary and pension of state-employees by 7.5 percent. The government has put a blanket ban on buying luxurious vehicles in Balochistan.

Mir Khalid Langov said the government has increased the non-development budget for maintaining law and order situation in Balochistan by 26% to Rs708 million rupees. The government will increase the number of police stations in Quetta while 215 million rupees were allocated for buying sophisticated weapons and other equipment for the police. “The government has distributed Rs1.300 billion among the families of those victims who had suffered from the incidents of terrorism,” he said.

Langove in his budget speech said Rs6.802 billion has been allocated for the agriculture sector increasing it by 7 per cent from the last fiscal year. Around Rs619 million was allocated for fisheries in Balochistan, increasing the budget by at least 13 per cent from the previous year. “The government has increased 161 per cent compared to the last fiscal year for the energy sector,” he said. Meagre resources were allocated for information, sports, culture, industries and commerce sectors of the province.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 19^th, 2015.