Federal Minister for Finance Shaukat Tareen presiding over the latest NFC Award meeting at a local hotel on November 19, 2009. - Photo by APP.

ISLAMABAD The government of Sindh has decided to propose that population should have a weightage of 70 per cent in the formula for distribution of resources under the National Finance Commission (NFC) award.

According to a representative of the province in the commission, Sindh would present the demand at the next NFC meeting to be held in Lahore on Dec 9.

A presentation prepared by Sindh shows that the province will demand that the criteria of population density, poverty and resource generation should be given a weightage of 10 per cent each.

The formula would lead to a reduction of about 10 per cent in Punjab's share.

Sindh wants the calculations of resource generation made at points of revenue collections.

According to sources in finance ministry, Punjab wants the calculation made at the generation side, at production units. The Sindh government's presentation says that the average of past four years shows that the province contributed about 65 per cent of national tax collection.

Customs duties collected in Sindh amounted to about 80 per cent of total collection, but the province was getting only 23 per cent of the collection because the current formula is based only on population.

Sindh maintains that it bears the cost of transportation and other expenses related to port activities and transportation of material to and from upcountry.

'The cost of infrastructure damage due to economic activity of national level in Sindh is borne by the provincial government,' said Dr Kaiser Bengali, private member of the NFC from the province.