‘Senate should play vital role in budget-making’

Karachi
The Social and Economic Survey Report 2013-2014 showed that the literacy rate in the country has declined from 60 percent to 58 percent, speakers at a seminar held at the Applied Economics Research Centre (AERC), University of Karachi, on said Tuesday.
Addressing the participants of the seminar titled 'Provincial Budgets of Pakistan', former deputy director Planning Commission Professor Dr Hafeez Ahmed Pasha said the Senate should be mandated to play a vital role in the budget legislation and proceedings.
He pointed out that the corporate sector was highly involved in tax evasion as only 23,000 out of 65,000 companies in Pakistan filed tax returns.
The 18th amendment was a piece of landmark legislation which ensured financial autonomy to the provincial governments and the abolition of the concurrent list. ”Pakistan would not have been disintegrated if this had been done in 1960s,” Dr Pasha observed.
According to Pasha, the provincial governments are spending more on the development sector as compared to the federal government. More than one trillion rupees have been spent in the defence sector this year by the Centre, he informed the audience.
Faculty of Social Sciences Dean Professor Dr Moonis Ahmar presided over the session.