QUETTA, June 27: Balochistan’s Finance Minister Jalil Khan Dotani on Thursday afternoon presented a total budget of Rs29.79 billion for the coming fiscal year, which includes current revenue expenditure of Rs19.75 billion and a total development outlay of Rs10.03 billion.

Announcing a tax-free budget, the minister in his speech on radio and television network indicated a revenue surplus of Rs6.67 billion as total resources in the coming fiscal year were being estimated at Rs26.43 billion. This, he said, included provincial revenue of Rs1.53 billion and federal transfers totalling Rs24.89 billion.

He estimated an overall budget deficit of Rs1.9 billion in the coming fiscal year which, he expected, could be met from higher allocation of the National Finance Commission or the federal grants. “In case of delay in both, it may be met by the draw down of our cash balances,” he said.

The NFC award has yet to come and any increase in the resources on the basis of that award has not been taken into account, Dotani informed the people of his province.

He called the year 2002-03 a year of consolidation of financial and administrative devolution. The year 2001-02 was a year of silent revolution, which saw the devolution of power at the grass roots level.

He recalled the district governments were inducted on Aug 14 last year and allocations were transferred to district governments on Sept 23 last year. The federal government provided Rs654 million to facilitate transition to the new system and “by grace of God, the system is now strongly saddled and is on way to consolidation.”

The Provincial Finance Commission, set up by the Balochistan government, has recommended distributing 31 per cent of total resources to the district governments, to be called “Provincial Allocable Amount”, he said.

The PFC has further recommended that the provincial allocable amount be distributed to various districts on the basis of ratio at which the funds were allocated to them in the budget estimates of the outgoing fiscal 2001-02, he added.

In addition, the districts would get the total amount falling as Balochistan’s share from out of the receipts of additional 2.5 per cent GST levied by the federal government.

Out of the total current expenditure of Rs19.75 billion, 22 district governments will get Rs7.79 billion, which is 31 per cent of the provincial resources.

From the total development outlay of Rs10.03 billion proposed for the 2002-03, the 22 districts are expected to get Rs1.52 billion while the provincial administration is set to utilize Rs8.51 billion.

Giving a breakdown of the expected inflow of resources from Islamabad in the coming year, Dotani indicated a sum of Rs8.43 billion as provincial share in the federal divisible pool

of taxes, Rs5.23 billion as constitutional subvention, Rs6.73 billion as surcharge on oil, Rs3.30 billion as excise duty and royalty on oil and gas, Rs161 million as provincial GST and Rs1.01 billion other grants from federal government.

The outgoing year, he said, was closing with a small deficit as the current expenditure increased by 3.7 per cent and there was a “phenomenal growth” in the development allocations which touched a peak of Rs7.88 billion.

The federal government provided grants to undertake Khushal Pakistan projects totalling Rs1.6 billion, for education reforms Rs329.5 million, social welfare schemes for petroleum exploration Rs22.5 million, Quetta water supply Rs73 million, remodelling and extension of Rabi canal Rs90 million, Turbat Mand Road Rs40 million, maintenance of law and order Rs226.9 million and Drought Emergency Relief Assistance Rs960 million, the minister informed the public.

In the new fiscal year, the law and order has claimed the highest allocation of Rs2.86 billion as the minister announced that six levies zones were being established with a strength of 1,250 personnel. He spelt out a number of steps which, he said, were aimed at strengthening the operational and investigative potential of the levies.

Similar reforms are also under way in police for which Rs200 million have been set aside, he added.

General administration will need Rs2.84 billion, followed by social services for which Rs2.20 billion have been provided. He announced a more than 100 per cent increase in the education budget to Rs1.17 billion for the new fiscal, from Rs542 million in the current outgoing year.

Equal importance, he said, was being given to health sector. Water and agriculture was also attracting the government’s attention to combat the drought.