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KP announces Rs1,118 billion budget for FY2021-22

KP announces Rs1,118 billion budget for FY2021-22
June 18, 2021

PESHAWAR (92 News) - Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Minister for Finance Taimur Khan Jhagra on Friday presented the budget for 2021-22 having a total outlay of Rs1.118 trillion.

Presenting the budget in the Provincial Assembly in Peshawar, Taimur Saleem Jhagra said that the government presented tax free budget for the next fiscal year with a historic outlay of eleven-hundred and eighteen billion rupees.

Salaries and Pensions

While announcing a 37 per cent increase in salaries and allowances of the government employees, the finance minister during the budget speech said that an increase in pensions of widows by 100 per cent is also proposed in the next year’s budget.

"We have also increased house rent for government employees by seven per cent, he said adding that the government has already saved Rs12 billion under an initiative to extend the time period of early retirement.

The minimum wage for labourers has been increased to Rs21,000.

Expenditure and Revenue

“The current expenditure is estimated at Rs747 billion next year,” Taimur Khan Jhagra said adding that Rs371 million have been earmarked for tribal areas including Rs100 billion for the uplift projects.

Rs919 billion have been allocated for the settled districts while Rs199 billion for the newly merged districts of the province. He said the province will receive Rs475.6 billion from the federal taxes and Rs57.20 billion from the federal divisible pool for war on terror.

“Rs75 billion will be received as profit for generation of power through windmills,” he said adding the province would also receive Rs19.90 billion under federal PSDP.

Annual Development Programme

The Finance Minister said three-hundred and seventy-one billion rupees have been allocated for the Annual Development Programme which is a record.

Adhoc relief

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government announced 10 per cent adhoc relief allowance in the salaries of provincial government employees and 10 per cent increase in pension in the new fiscal year budget.

The provincial Finance Minister also announced an increase of twenty percent functional or sectoral allowance for the employees up to grade-19 who are not receiving any special allowances besides seven percent increase in the house rent allowance for employees’ not availing government residence.

Health

Over Rs142 billion have been earmarked for the promotion of health facilities in the province besides establishment of four big hospitals at a cost of Rs40 billion under public-private partnership.

Taimur Saleem Jhagra said a medical insurance plan has also been introduced in the new budget for provincial government employees.

The finance minister said that the government is providing health facilities to the 7.2 million population of the province through health cards and Rs23 billion would be spent on the facility in the next year.

Education

He said a total of RS206 billion have been allocated for the Elementary and Secondary Education department and Rs27 billion for the higher education department.

Tax-free budget

Winding up the speech, Finance Minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra said despite the financial crisis and prevalence of the global pandemic of covid-19, the government has presented a public-friendly tax-free budget.

The Finance Minister also presented a supplementary budget for the financial year 2020-21 amounting to 78.84 billion rupees.

Earlier the provincial cabinet in its meeting chaired by Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mahmood Khan approved the budget for the next fiscal year.