QUETTA: Billions of rupees in financial irregularities, uncollected taxes, and mismanaged funds have come to light as the Balochistan Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) raised alarm over serious lapses in financial discipline.
The committee, chaired by Asghar Ali Tareen on Monday, reviewed audit and compliance reports and found widespread violations in handling budgetary allocations, savings, and revenue collections across multiple departments.
According to the audit report, during 2016-17, Rs3,336.1 million were allocated under non-development funds, but Rs740.6 million in savings were never surrendered, reflecting weak fiscal control. Even more alarming, between 2020-21 and 2021-22, deputy commissioners retained Rs19,144.236 million in bank accounts instead of depositing them with the provincial treasury, in direct violation of financial rules.
The report further revealed that in 2019-20 and 2020-21, expenditure records worth Rs33.736 million were withheld from auditors. Similarly, during 2019-21, the government failed to collect Rs1,101.469 million in Ushr, irrigation tax (Abiana), and agricultural income tax — depriving the exchequer of crucial revenue.
Another violation highlighted was the issuance of cheques worth Rs228.964 million by commissioners’ and deputy commissioners’ offices in the names of DDOs, instead of making direct vendor payments.
Expressing serious concern, Chairman Tareen emphasised that budget savings must be surrendered without delay and warned of disciplinary measures against officers obstructing financial transparency. The committee also criticized several deputy commissioners for failing to comply with PAC directives issued as far back as 2020.
The PAC directed immediate submission of all pending records to audit authorities, mandatory deposit of withheld funds into the treasury, and strict action against negligent officers, stressing that financial discipline cannot be ensured without strict adherence to rules.