NA approves govt’s all 92 demands for grants

ISLAMABAD: The government on Wednesday get all 92 demands for grants approved from the National Assembly (NA) relating to different ministries, divisions and departments for the next fiscal year while all the cut motions moved by the members from the oppositions were rejected, showing signs of easy approval of the federal budget.

NA Speaker Asad Qaisar directed for voting on a demand for grant when the PPP member Syed Khurshid Shah challenged its passage with the majority voice. The government managed approval of the demand for grant with 160 to 126 votes of the opposition. In later part of the proceedings, none of opposition member asked for voting on any demand for grant or cut motion.

Prime Minister Imran Khan also attended proceedings of the House for half an hour. The treasury benches also welcomed arrival of Sardar Akhtar Mengal of Balochistan Nataional Party (Mengal) who declined to attend opposition parties’ All Parties Conference (APC) a day before.

The 66 demands which were passed were related to Climate Change, Commerce Division, Communications Division, Postal Services, Defense Division, Ministry of Federal Government Educational and Professional Training, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Ministry of Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan, Housing and Works Division, Federal Lodges, Human Rights Division, Industries and Production Division, Information Technology and Telecommunication Division, Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination, Maritime Affairs Division, National Assembly, National Health Services, Overseas and Human Resource Development Division, Planning and Reform Division, Privatization Division, Pakistan Railways, State and Frontier Regions Division, Ministry of Climate and Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony and others.

No cut motions were moved by the opposition on these demands for grants.

The House also approved another 23 demands for grants for the next financial year relating to various departments, including Cabinet, Establishment, Aviation and Capital Administration divisions, Prime Minister Office, National Security Division, Federal Public Service Commission, Meteorology Department, and Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division.

The House rejected over 300 cut motions moved by opposition members against these demands. Winding up discussion on cut motions, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan rejected an impression about raise in allocations for the Prime Minister House saying instead 32 percent decrease in the expenditure of Prime Minister House has been made as expenses came down from Rs986 million to Rs675 million since Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has come to power.

The Minister went on to say that PTI government now has allocated Rs660 million for the Prime Minister House which include both internal expenses on the House and expenses on the public office. “This allocation is less than Rs670 million for the Prime Minister House in 2014-2015, the minimum budget for a year in five-year tenure of the PML-N Government,” he said.

The Minister said the PML-N Government allocated Rs700 million in 2013-2014 and Rs810 million for the year 2015-2016 and the same was raised in next two years. Regarding poverty alleviation, he said Rs192 billion has been allocated to uplift the downtrodden. He said prime minister’s inspection commission has filed six inquiries in just one year against five inquiries during the entire term of PML-N government of the past.