March 6, 2003	Thursday	Muharram 2, 1424

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PESHAWAR, March 5: The NWFP government has received over Rs500 million from the funds the federal government has earmarked for provinces during the year 2002-03 in lieu of octroi and Zila tax, official sources told Dawn.

The funds, actually meant for distribution among the district governments, have been released in line with the military government’s decision to provide 2.5 per cent additional amount from the total collection of General Sales Tax to support the newly established administrative entities at the grass root level.

Though the federal government’s move was aimed at providing relief to the district governments facing financial problems, achievement of the objective could hardly be ensured in view of the decision-making authority enjoyed by the provincial governments in terms of releasing funds to the district governments, the sources said.

The Peshawar City District government’s town-1 administration recently experienced a serious financial crisis after the provincial government stopped its share for January from the funds provided in lieu of octroi and Zila tax.

The provincial government necessitated the move to adjust the part of electricity arrears Wapda deducted from the NWFP account to recover the amount it had laid claimed against the town-1 administration.

Official sources told Dawn that a paltry sum of Rs1,008 million — earmarked for distribution among the 24 district governments in NWFP in lieu of octroi and Zila tax during the 2002-03 financial year — would not work much as far as improving the district government financial health was concerned.

The funds released to the province make 50 per cent of the total funds the provincial government has reflected in its current financial year’s budget to receive from the federal government on account of 2.5 per cent additionality of GST.

The amount, according to sources, was made available to the province in more than four tranches and was released to it by the end of the first seven months of the current fiscal year.

“One can hardly be sure that the province would receive Rs1,008 million by the close of the current fiscal in view of the funds released to it so far,” said a well-placed official source.

However, one of the senior finance managers of the provincial government, when contacted, expressed the hope that the province would receive the amount it had pledged in its budget for the current financial year.

He pinned hopes on the fact that collections under the head of GST recorded considerable improvement.