Efforts are underway not to impose any new tax in the Sindh budget for fiscal year 2012-13, said Sindh Minister for Finance Syed Murad Ali Shah here on Monday. Speaking at a meeting of Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) on Sindh Budget, the minister said he could not reveal the detail of the budget as he was constitutionally bound to unveil the budgetary details in Assembly only at the time of budget presentation.
Shah said that the budget would not be a deficit budget. He further said that the budget would be a reflection of the government's four-year performance. The minister assured that a sizable amount would be allocated for infrastructure development of Site industrial area.
He said he was in favour that everybody having income from whatever source should pay tax. However, he did not agree that agriculture sector is not paying taxes. He said that taxing agriculture income was a provincial subject and only provincial government can impose the tax. His comment that agriculture sector was paying huge taxes stirred a long result-less debate.
The minister said that government was giving top priority to law and order. After education, highest budgetary allocation has been made for law and order sector. He said that the government had provided Rs 5 billion for purchase of equipment to police. Out of it 50 percent was provided by Sindh government and rest by federal government. The minister did not agreed that the amount allocated in the budget 2011-12 for purchase of vehicle for law enforcing agencies was misused as the vehicles purchased were now being used for protocol duty of minister and others.
Referring to business community's concern over sales tax on services, he said that Sindh Revenue Board (SRB) had been constituted which was performing very well. To a query, he said that Sindh was producing around 70 percent of the total gas of the country. Shah alleged that PML-N was not prepared to fallow constitution and making efforts to bulldoze the constitution and destabilise the government.
He said that Sindh government had solutions to the energy crises. It has gas, huge coal reserves, and wind corridor to generate power. The minister informed that Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) was facing serious financial crisis due to non-payment of dues by its consumers.
A proposal has been discussed with Dr Asim that a combined bill of gas and water should be set to the consumers to improve collection of water charges. He advised members of the KCCI to hold a meeting with him over anomalies and double taxation issues in next two days.
Speaking on the occasion, Sindh Minister for Excise and Taxation, Mukaish Kumar Chawala agreed with a proposal that property tax collected from industrial areas should be spend infrastructure development of the areas. He also agreed that 0.85 percent sales tax on import of machinery for Export Processing Zone (EPZ) should be abolished. He said that a summery in this regard has been sent to the chief minister and likely to be approved soon. He informed that motor vehicle registration and tax records have been computerised.