PESHAWAR, June 5: The NWFP government is likely to set Provincial Own Receipts’ (PORs) target for the next financial year at over Rs3.6 billion, making nominal changes in its revenue generation plan for the on-going financial year, sources told Dawn here on Wednesday.

The target, if set at the same benchmark, would apparently be Rs48 million less than the Rs3.692 billion target which had initially been set for the financial year 2001-02.

However, the up-coming financial year’s PORs’ target appears to be Rs55 million more than the Rs3.587 billion downward revised target for the financial year 2001-02.

Official sources said that PORs’ target for the next financial year was being set at a realistic level keeping in mind the actual strength of each and every recovery head falling under the PORs head.

“NWFP’s PORs do not have the capacity to fetch revenue more than the amount being eyed as target for the next financial year nor does the provincial government has the flexibility to enhance its tax base,” said sources.

No upward revision in rates of taxes and various types of fees being collected by the provincial government was being envisaged for the next financial year, they said.

While setting the next financial year’s PORs’ target under various tax and non-tax heads taken care by the provincial government, minor changes have been made in the financial year 2001-02 revenue generation plan by revising collection targets under some of the important recovery heads forming the PORs.

Whereas, sources said, recovery targets for the financial year 2002-03 on account of stamp duty, registration fee, land revenue and arms licence fee would remain the same, maintaining the financial year 2001-02 level. The targets under the heads of abiana, property and wealth tax, tax on professions, provincial excise and motor vehicle are likely to be enhanced for the next financial year in comparison with the bench marks set for the current financial year.

Besides, there are also a couple of POR heads which would experience reduction in terms of revenue generation target for the up-coming financial year.

Recovery target on account of land tax and agriculture income tax head has been decided to be set at Rs50 million after the provincial government kept on recording massive shortfall under this vital recovery head in continuation with the past five financial years when the tax was introduced on acreage basis.

However, the move of fixing the PORs’ target at Rs3.6 billion would apparently be in negation of the provincial government’s plan to gradually raise the PORs size in a span of three years by means of reforms in the tax collection system — administrative and collection.