The NWFP government has called for the establishment of a special institution to ensure timely announcement of the National Finance Commission (NFC) award in future.
Addressing a post budget press conference here on Sunday, NWFP Senior Minister Sirajul-Haq reiterated his stand that the criteria for the distribution of national resources on the basis of population was wrong and unjustified.
It should be distributed on the basis of poverty and backwardness of the federating units, he emphasised. Such decisions should not be taken on political basis, but on the basis of needs and requirements of the people, he added.
The senior minister said that the province had accepted the new award unwillingly, as the provinces were not taken into confidence over the matter.
"We will accept the NFC Award if it will be announced in the light of unanimously passed resolution," reaffirmed Siraj.
The NWFP Assembly has passed a unanimous resolution suggesting the distribution of the national resources on ratio of 40:60. He said that provinces should be given 60 percent of the national resources while 40 percent should remain with the federal government.
He was confident that the arbitration tribunal, established to resolve the dispute over net-profit on hydropower generation between NWFP and Wapda, would announce its decision in October this year.
"After getting our due right from Wapda, the province will be in position to give loans to other provinces," he added. He also hinted at raising the matter of return of the federal government debts through getting low mark-up loans from the commercial banks.
Siraj-ul-Haq, who also holds the portfolio of finance, said that the resources of the province was on rise, saying the province had received a royalty of Rs 1 billion on gas production from Kohat and Shakar Dara. More increase is expected during the next financial year as feasibility of 80 more wells has been completed.
The Wapda Cell established in the NWFP finance department had also helped save Rs 1 billion in head of disputed electricity bills of the various provincial government departments.
The provincial government, he said, was making all out efforts to further cut the non-developmental expenditure.
Malakand-III, Hydropower generation project, he said would be completed in December this year, which would generate Rs 1 billion annually for the province. During the next financial year, the provincial government had planned to start work on three more hydropower generation projects.
He said the income generated from the projects would go long way in the arrest of poverty and backwardness of the province.
Comparing the budget estimates with the last three budgets of the MMA government, he said that allocations for education, health, roads and social welfare have increased by 81, 102, 33 and 149 percents respectively.
He said the volume of budget since 2003-04 has registered an increase by Rs 19.32 billion, including welfare budget by Rs 3.21 billion, developmental sector by Rs 11.93 billion and administrative budget by Rs 4.17 billion.
Giving details of the steps taken for the welfare of the people, the senior minister said that the emergency relief budget of the Social Welfare Council had been increased from Rs 5 million to Rs 10 million. Students of the Wafaq-ul-Madaris with top three positions would be awarded Rs 25,000/-, Rs 20,000/- and Rs15,000/- respectively. Furthermore, all students after completion of their post graduation would be given an allowance of Rs 1000/- for a period of one year.
The facility of the interest-free loans for the government employees has been extended up to BPS 15. Residents of the earthquake-affected areas would be given special quota in the government employment.
Under the social safety net scheme, the senior citizens would be given a social security support of Rs500/- per month. The scheme would be implemented in two districts of Kohistan and Shangla in first phase as pilot project and 2500 more people would be recruited in the police.
The provincial government would construct family quarters for the prisoners in Peshawar, DI Khan and Haripur where they would spent three days with their wives in a month.
The government employees would be given 15 percent allowance on price hike for which fund of Rs 3.3 billion has been allocated in the budget. In education sector 210 new primary schools and 11 high schools would be established in the province during financial year 2006-07 while 615 nurses and 1000 lady health visitors would be recruited in the health sector.
In social welfare sector, the government would construct 7 Darul Kafalas and 7 Sarai in the defunct divisional headquarters.
A fund of Rs 102 has been allocated for the installation of 192 tube-wells in the head of urban development.
In response to a question, he said that the estimated deficit in the 2006-07 budget is Rs 3.8 billion.
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