KARACHI: The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) Budget for financial year 2019-20 was presented in the KMC Council meeting held on Thursday by Mayor Wasim Akhtar in the Council Hall of KMC Building.

Deputy Mayor Syed Arshad Hasan and Metropolitan Commissioner Dr. Syed Saif-Ur-Rehman were also present on the occasion.

The budget meeting will resume on Friday at 2:30pm after which the council will give its approval for next budget of KMC.

Total receipts in the budget for year 2019-20 are Rs 26,449.825 million, including Rs 20,374.087million as current receipts and Rs 1,734.426 million as capital receipts.

Funds for provincial annual development program (ADP) & District ADP will be Rs 4,341.312 million.

The total expenditure for the next fiscal year will be Rs 26,438.888 million out of which Rs 14,462.326million allocated for the establishment; Rs 2,280.905million for contingent expenses and Rs 222.040m for repair and maintenance.

Besides, Rs 5,132.305 million has been earmarked for development projects and works, while expenditures from provincial ADP and District ADP will be Rs4,341.312million.

Grants from Government are estimated as Rs 12.938.437million and provincial ADP & District ADP are Rs 4,341.312million.

Revenue from land and other departments is estimated as Rs 1,591.326 million and from MUCT is Rs 1,152.560million whereas dues of KMC against K-Electric is Rs 4,409.040million.

KMC allocated sum of Rs 3,334million for 700 development projects in the next fiscal year out of which Rs 1,697.7million allocated for 494 infrastructure(roads) projects and for 10 municipal services projects Rs 42.650million, for 7 transport and communication works Rs 35 million, for 62 health projects Rs 270.100 million, for 103 projects of culture and tourism Rs 403.500 million, for 8 information technology projects Rs 45.050 million and for new schemes Rs 833.500 million allocated  in the budget for 2019-20.

Giving details of the budget, Mayor Karachi said the KMC budget reduced due to curtailment of Rs one billion and 67 crore in the ADP by the Government which was made despite an increase of Rs 2 billion in the NFC Award.

The Government curtailed the development budget despite collected revenue amounting to Rs 300 to 400 billion in Karachi.

He said that it was hard to prepare the budget due to financial crisis and limited resources as even staff salaries were difficult to be paid.

He said that in the current financial year 134 projects were completed and 134 were not completed due to non release of fourth quarter of the ADP.

In the current year the Government of Sindh allocated Rs 5 billion for ADP but only released Rs2.5billion.

KMC included 401 schemes in the budget but only 64 of these could be finished.

He said that despite of decrease in the ADP funds from Rs5billion to Rs3.33bilion we have included the most urgent works in the city to provide immediate relief to citizens.

He also gave details of various development works which have been carried out during the current fiscal year in the city.