PESHAWAR, July 25: NWFP received Rs 83 billion less than the projected amount jointly under the heads of direct federal transfer and net hydel profit during the five-year term of the 1997 National Finance Commission (NFC) award, according to sources.

The Frontier was projected to receive a total of Rs 194.83 billion jointly under the two heads during the five-year term of the 1997 NFC award, which ended on June 30, last.

According to annual shares projected under the NFC award, the province was supposed to get Rs 136.09 billion as its share from the federal divisible pool (FDP) during the last five financial years, i.e. from 1997-98 financial year to 2001-02 financial year.

As against this the province received a total of Rs 82.14 billion during the same period including Rs 13.87 billion in the 1997-98 financial year (against the Rs 18.9 billion projected share), Rs 14.6 billion in the 1998-99 financial year (against the Rs 22.34 billion projected share), Rs 15.12 billion in the 1999-2000 financial year (against the Rs 26.43 billion projected share), Rs 18.35 billion in the 2000-01 financial year (against the Rs 31.32 billion projected share) and Rs 19.39 billion was transferred to NWFP from Islamabad in the 2001-02 financial year against the Rs 37.1 billion share from the NFC award’s projections.

Central Board of Revenue’s inability to meet assigned annual revenue target made the NWFP to suffer heavily, leaving it dependent on bank borrowings for meeting its essential expenditure.

Apart from the direct federal transfers, the province also suffered massive shortfall under the net hydel profit account. Against Rs 58.74 billion total share projected to be released to the NWFP by Water and Power Development Authority on account of net hydel profit share, the province received a total of Rs 30 billion during the same period at the rate Rs six billion per annum during the five-year term of the 1997 NFC award, which lapsed on June 30, last.

“The province received some Rs 28.74 billion less than the NFC projected figure in line with the unilateral capping of the annual share amount at Rs six billion by the Wapda for the last over eight years,” the sources said.

According to sources, the provincial government has once again moved the President Gen Pervez Musharraf on the issue of capping the provincial share at Rs six billion by Wapda.

“The province is trying to get its net hydel profit share uncapped during the new financial year,” sources added.

According to the sources, the provincial government has requested the president that if the province could not be released its share in accordance with the NFC award projections, at least, the proportion of the capped share amount should be enhanced from the existing level of Rs six billion by Rs two billion.

“This would come as a great help to the province providing it greater fiscal space and lowering its dependence on the bank borrowings,” the sources said.