QUETTA: Balochistan Minister for Finance Engineer Zmarak Khan Achakzai on Monday unveiled the provincial budget for the fiscal year 2023-24, with a total outlay of Rs750 billion.
The Balochistan Assembly session was chaired by Speaker Balochistan Assembly Jan Muhammad Jamali. Chief Minister Balochistan Mir Abdul Quddus Bizenjo, ministers and members of the provincial Assembly were also present.
In his speech, the finance minister said that over Rs229.301 billion have been earmarked for the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP), and the volume of non-development expenditure was kept at Rs 437 billion.
Zmarak Khan said that the budget for the fiscal year 2023-24 was tax-free. He said that the budget deficit for the next financial year was Rs49 billion rupees, while Rs65 billion have been allocated for health in the budget.
He said that 35 percent of salaries were increased from grade one to 16 grades while 30 percent of salaries have been enhanced for grades 17 to 22 and 17.5 percent were increased in the pensioners in the financial budget.
A total of Rs87 billion have been earmarked for the education sector in the budget of the next financial year. He said that Rs53 billion have been set for law and order situation and security in the budget.
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The total revenue of Balochistan is estimated at Rs701 billion for the next financial year, he said adding Rs170 billion was allocated for 4721 ongoing schemes during the new financial year.
He said that Rs58 billion allocated for 5068 new schemes, while 100 new primary schools would be given the status of secondary and 50 primary schools to be given the status of high schools.
The Minister said that 863 new posts would be created in the education sector for the betterment of the education sector, saying that in the budget, Rs12 billion have been allocated for the development of primary and secondary education.
Earlier, lawmakers prayed for the Pakistani victims of the Greece incident in the session of the Assembly.
