PESHAWAR, Nov 18: Islamabad has so far released only a sum of over Rs26.5 million to NWFP as its share from the general sales tax (GST) on services, according to official sources.

The funds transferred to the province during the first four months of the current financial year — in a single tranche — appear to be 6.4 per cent of the Rs413.203 million projected as NWFP’s share from GST on services for the financial year 2002-03.

Official sources told Dawn that though the funds transferred to NWFP were negligible, the position would improve in the months to come, particularly in the second half of the financial year.

They hoped the province would get more than the amount it had projected under the head of GST on services.

GST on services — a provincial levy collected by the Central Board of Revenue — is regarded, by the provincial official circles, as one of the most vital recovery head for the province(s).

NWFP had received Rs375.651 million during the financial year 2001-02 against the initially set benchmark of Rs266.7 million.

The province recorded improvement in the resource transfer from the federal government on account of GST on services after the total national collections under the same head recorded considerable improvement.

According to the sources, the federal government had projected to distribute a total Rs1,969.8 million among the four provinces as GST on services.

However, after the revenue generation recorded improvement the four provinces collectively received a total of Rs2.77 billion during the financial year 2001-02 — some Rs804 million more than the amount they had initially projected under the said head.

“The provinces received more than the initially projected amount after resource generation under this new levy (GST on services) showed marked improvement in its second year of introduction, i.e. financial year 2001-02,” said official sources.