RAWALPINDI: The City District Government Rawalpindi (CDGR) failed to approve its annual budget for 2014-15, giving rise to the fear that the government employees will not get July salaries before Eidul Fitr.

The local government had announced to provide the salaries to the government employees before the Eidul Fitr but the local administration has failed to approve the annual budget hence the salaries will not be released.

A senior official of the CDGR told Dawn that the employees might not get 10 per cent increase the government had announced in the budget as the local administration had not received the notification with regard to approval of Punjab annual budget for 2014-15.

He said that the CDGR had completed homework for the annual budget but was waiting for the provincial government notification approving provincial budget and share of the Rawalpindi district.

“The letter of the Punjab government regarding the district share and notification of the budget is necessary for the approval of its (district) budget and without the letter the finance department will not release funds to it.

Employees may not get July salaries before Eid

“If the annual budget of the district is not approved before the Eid, the local administration will have to get special permission from the government for the release of salaries earlier without the increase as promised in the provincial budget,” he said.

The local government utilises 90 per cent of the funds provided by the provincial government is utilised in payment of salaries of the government employees and the rest is spent on meeting other expenditures.

According to rules, the districts will have to prepare the budget soon after the approval of the provincial budget. However, there is grace period of one month for the preparation of budget of the district.

In 2013-14, the total outlay of the budget was Rs10.994 billion. Salary budget was Rs8780.214 million and budget for contingencies Rs581.122 million.

Total non-development budget was Rs9361.336 million including bills of electricity, telephones, fuel and natural gas.

Total receipt under PFC Award was Rs9152.587 million while PFC municipal share was Rs293.712 million and own source receipts were Rs158.272 million.

District Coordination Officer (DCO) Sajid Zafar Dall told Dawn that the CDGR would approve the budget next week and the salaries of the government employees would be released before Eidul Fitr.

He said the provincial government intimated the Provincial Finance Commission Award share of the district verbally and the CDGR would announce the budget soon after receiving the formal letter in this regard.

He said that the CDGR had made development schemes for all the tehsils in the district and would launch them after Eidul Fitr.

Published in Dawn, July 9th , 2014