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Planning ministry proposes PSDP of Rs1.3 trillion for FY2019

By Mehtab Haider
April 07, 2018

ISLAMABAD: The Planning Commission advised the finance ministry to almost double the size of development spending to Rs1.3 trillion against the ministry’s proposed Rs750 billion for the fiscal year of 2018/19, a top official said on Friday.

“We have written to the finance ministry to increase the size of federal development outlay to Rs1.3 trillion against an indicated allocation of Rs750 billion proposed by it for the upcoming budget for the fiscal year of 2018/19,” Shoaib Siddiqui, secretary of ministry of planning told reporters.

Siddiqui said the government would give priority to water sector, higher education and construction of roads in the next budget. “Government will allocate more resources for ongoing projects and a limited number of new projects will be made part of the next PSDP (public sector development program).”

The secretary said the planning ministry proposed April 15 or 16 as a meeting date for the Annual Planning Coordination Committee. “Now the (planning) minister would take final decision on it.”

All the ministries/divisions and departments demanded the government of Rs1.9 trillion in PSDP allocations, which is unlikely to be met keeping in view the resource constraints.

Earlier, ministry of finance, in an indicative budget ceiling, to the ministry of planning proposed PSDP at Rs745 billion for the next fiscal year as against Rs1,000 billion allocated for 2017/18. Government, however, slashed the PSDP to Rs800 billion to restrict the budget deficit within the target.

Separately, the finance division sought Rs10 billion, out of Rs105 billion in special (bloc) budgetary allocations for 2018/19, for the prime minister’s discretionary program. Allocations for temporarily displaced persons and security purposes account for a major chunk in the special funds.

The finance ministry directed the Planning Commission to earmark Rs10 billion for Prime Minister’s sustainable development goals in the upcoming budget.

Previously, Prime Minister’s Adviser on Finance Miftah Ismail said all the discretionary programs would be abolished for the coming fiscal year.

Officials said Water and Power Development Authority, in a planning ministry’s meeting, sought Rs35 billion in the next PSDP for Diamer-Bhasha dam.

Railways ministry demanded of Rs35 billion for Mainline-1.

Siddiqui said that he had constituted inter-provincial working party forum in order to resolve cost-sharing difficulties faced by provinces in the inter-provincial projects. Sindh has already raised funding issues at the Council of Common Interest.

The province demanded allocation of Karachi water supply scheme in the next budget, “which could be fulfilled if they (the province) come up after meeting procedural requirements of projects,” the secretary said. “We held meetings with the officials of all provinces and ironed out the differences.”