KARACHI, June 25: The budget session of Sindh Assembly was prorogued on Wednesday after the House approved provincial budget 2003-04 and financial bill 2003.

The budget was passed unanimously within 10 minutes after the second break in the absence of the opposition which had walk out of the House as soon as the speaker asked Finance Minister Syed Sardar Ahmad to move the motion for grants pertaining to the supplementary expenditure for 2002-03.

The total outlay of the new fiscal is Rs8,987.584 million with ADP of Rs 11,000 million while 53 demands for grants for supplementary expenditure Rs584.469 million. After approval of the supplementary budget, the minister placed the budget proposal before the House for voting, followed by three readings and adoption of the finance bill 2003 which was passed by voice votes.

The order of Governor Ishratul Ibad was read out by Speaker Syed Muzaffar Hussain Shah after a few speeches by members from the treasury benches flaying the opposition for their ‘non-serious attitude’ throughout the session. The MPAs welcomed the budget and appreciated the role of the speaker who, they said, remained composed and exercised patience despite the opposition’s ‘unbecoming attitude’.

Education minister Irfanullah Marwat acknowledged 23 per cent increase in the allocation to education sector and better facilities to be extended to every district in health sector.

He pointed out that in the earlier sessions, including the one requisitioned by the opposition, slogans like ‘go Musharraf go’ and those against LFO had never been raised. “It is only after receiving instructions from overseas that they indulged in the unprecedented rumpus, jumping over benches and setting budget documents on fire,” he alleged.

Shoaib Bokhari, Minister for Planning and Development, said that the allocation to agriculture sector had been raised by 49 per cent. He described the move as appropriate saying that agriculture was the mainstay of the province.

He requested finance minister to approve the honorarium for the assembly’s staff as per annual precedence.

Had the opposition been serious in taking part in the debate on budget, it would have presented cut motions to ensure more relief to the people of Sindh, he said. However, he claimed, the opposition had not done any homework and determined to indulge in politics of protests.

Local Government Minister Mohammad Hussain said that right from June 16 till date, the opposition repeatedly violated the rules of procedure. Even, he added, it failed to follow the rules mentioned by itself.

Mr Hussain pointed out that the budget was a document which was important to each and every citizen of the province. He regretted that the opposition legislators had failed to come up to the expectations of their electorates who had sent them to the assembly to strive for a better life for the citizens.

Minister for Religious Affairs Dr Irfan Gul Magsi said that the opposition had missed an opportunity to make the budget proposals even more people-friendly and get any flaws removed. His view was supported by Sultan Khuawar, Begum Bilqees Mukhtar, Farheena Umbareen, Fareeda Bano and Ali Bakhsh Shah.