The government to unveil the federal budget of around Rs 4.3 trillion for the next fiscal year today (Friday). Sources said the next year's federal budget is still undergoing changes. An official said that the Finance Minister who faced strong criticism from the ruling party's parliamentarians for ignoring the agriculture sector, is said to have been facing enormous problems in cutting power sector subsidy to Rs 118 billion after Lahore High Court's verdict in the case of surcharges.
The government, a senior official of Finance Ministry said, has committed to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) during the last review of $6.64 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) that it would decrease power sector subsidy to Rs 118 billion during the next fiscal year from Rs 222 billion for the current fiscal year.
The party members complained that farmers are facing immense problems due to high cost of input and must be provided some relief in the budget for 2015-16. However, the Finance Minister did not share details of the relief measures or any of the important aspects of budget with them. He said that he would announce the relief measures only during his budget speech. Secretary Finance Dr Waqar Masood has informed a parliamentary committee that tax collection target for the next fiscal year is estimated at Rs 3.1 trillion for the next fiscal year while the budget deficit for the next fiscal year has been agreed with the Fund at 4.3 per cent of the GDP.
According to an official of Prime Minister's House, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif chaired a pre-budget meeting of parliamentary party leaders of ruling party as well as of the party's cabinet members. The Finance Minister briefed them about the salient features of the budget for 2015-16 and stated that the country's bad economic performance was due to protest sit-ins.
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