PESHAWAR – Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak has said his government will unveil a tax-free, balanced and pro-poor budget for the next financial year on June 7 (today).
“The provincial budget would be different from the budget presented by the Centre as the federal government budget offered nothing for the poor but gave incentives to the elite,” the CM said while presiding over a consultative meeting on the provincial budgetary proposals and annual development programme at Chief Minister’s House.
Khattak said the PTI-led government would enhance the salaries and fringe benefits of the salaried class. The government would also work on the capacity-building of the salaried class so that they could carry forward the agenda for empowering the poor, he added.
The meeting had a detailed review of the ADP and approved the developmental sketch of the schemes. 58 new and ongoing schemes for education including the establishment of 10 new post-graduate colleges were approved during the meeting.
The chief minister also approved transportation and two public libraries in the new development schemes for colleges in the province. The meeting approved 30 schemes for agriculture sector development, which included 17 ongoing and 13 new schemes. The chief minister directed to focus on agriculture sector development including conversion of tube-wells to solarisation.
Also, the project for solarisation of mosques is being shifted to the Energy and Power department which will have 28 ongoing and 26 new schemes. In the wake of the energy crisis, schemes in public health, street and road lights were being shifted to solarisation.
There would be 36 schemes in forest department in the new ADP. The CM directed for the efficient management and development mechanism for the national parks in the province.
Khattak also referred to taking measures in the context of the CPEC which he believed would boom industrialisation in the province. “Efforts are also being made to enhance the security level for the investors and speed up economic-oriented activities to create more jobs.”
He also directed for the efficient management and development mechanism for the national parks in the province.
The meeting approved the 3rd phase of the ‘billion tree tsunami’ and approved 12 schemes for the food department. CM Khattak also gave a nod to 53 schemes for the youth in sports, tourism, culture etc.
The new budget would provide resources for completing Arbab Niaz Cricket Stadium on the fast track. However, resources for the creation of the facilities in the Rustam Sports Complex Mardan would be gradually increased. Work on 158 sports grounds has been initiated of which 85 are entering completion.
Pervez Khattak said that from the new fiscal year onwards, his government would restart giving a monthly stipend to the poets and literary figures of up to 30 thousand rupees per month.
