KARACHI, June 16: Sindh Finance Minister Syed Sardar Ahmed on Wednesday announced the following incentives and relief measures while presenting the provincial budget for financial year 2004-05:

- No new tax has been imposed and no increase in the rate of taxes has been made.

- The amount of insurance for civil servants under the Group Insurance Scheme has been enhanced. In case of death of a civil servant his family will now be entitled to an additional sum from Rs100,000 to Rs800,000.

This benefit has also been extended to retired government servants up to the age of 65 years. The allocation of benevolent fund has been increased from Rs168 million to Rs255 million to give relief to widows, disabled and retired government servants.

- House building/improvement loans would be extended to the provincial government employees with the cooperation of the National Bank of Pakistan. Under this scheme, all permanent employees will be provided house construction loan up to Rs10 million and house improvement loan up to Rs2 million at a low interest rate.

- The provincial government has also decided to extend health insurance cover to all its employees. Modalities in this respect are being worked out and the scheme will be implemented in the next financial year.

- The current licence fee for installation of a new cotton ginning or pressing factory varies from Rs500 per roller to a maximum of Rs5,000. These rate differentials have been removed and a flat rate of Rs1,000 will now be charged.

- The existing fee for allotment of an identification mark to a cotton ginning and pressing factory at Rs500 has been withdrawn.

- The existing transportation fee on seed cotton (phutty), ginned cotton (lint) and cotton seed (binola) which varies from Rs3 to Rs6 per 40 kg has been withdrawn.

- The existing professional tax being charged from petrol pumps at the rate of Rs1,500 to Rs4,000 on the basis of commission earned has been rationalized. Henceforth, all categories have been merged into one and this tax is now to be charged at a flat rate of Rs2,500.

- Stamp duty charged at the rate of Re1 per leaf on cheques, pay orders and bank drafts has been withdrawn.

- Stamp duty on airline tickets charged at Rs25 (domestic) and Rs250 (international) has been withdrawn. -APP