PESHAWAR, Sept 2: NWFP recorded a revenue shortfall of over Rs40 million in the financial year 2002-03. The short fall was due to reduced
payments it received from the federal government on account of 2.5 per cent additional funds provided (to provinces)
for onward distribution among the district governments from the GST head, according to officials.
“After the federal government released funds less than the revised amount earmarked for distribution among the district governments the province experienced revenue shortfall of over Rs40 million in the outgoing financial year,” said an official of the provincial government.
As per the revised budgetary estimates, the province was supposed to get Rs971 million from the funds the Centre had earmarked for distribution among the district governments.
In an attempt to help district governments over come their financial problems, the federal government had diverted 2.5 per cent of the total amount collected under the head GST.
Originally, the Centre had estimated the NWFP district governments’ share to come around Rs1,008.393 million from the total funds earmarked for them in the fiscal 2002-03. Later, the share was revised downward to Rs971 million duly reflected under the revised estimates of the province.
Officials told Dawn that the accounts settled on June 30 left NWFP with a shortfall of over Rs40 million under this head after it was not paid the amount it had been promised under the downward revised projection for the last financial year.
“Shortfall may well have been caused by less than the expected revenue generation under the general sales tax head,” said a provincial government functionary.
Another source said the shortfall might well have been caused by reasons other than revenue shortfall under the GST head. He was of the view that the provinces’ share under the 2.5 per cent GST had been calculated on the basis of revenue generated by the local bodies under the heads of octroi and zila tax — now stand abolished.
The impact of revenue shortfall, said the officials, was duly passed on to the district governments. Each one of the 24 district governments of NWFP experienced shortfall in their respective receipts from the same account.
