QUETTA: The opposition leader and other lawmakers on Friday urged the Balochistan government to take concrete measures to increase the province’s income, allocate maximum funds for development, and curtail non-development expenditures.

They highlighted that while the government has claimed in the budget that 6,000 jobs would be created in the next financial year, there are approximately three million unemployed youth in the province.

Opening the debate on the provincial budget for 2025-26, Mir Younis Aziz Zehri, the opposition leader in the Balochistan Assembly, said the province’s own income remains very low, emphasising the need for effective strategies to boost provincial revenues, thereby increasing the availability of funds for development initiatives.

He said the current allocation for the Annual Development Programme (ADP) is insufficient, urging the government to reduce non-development expenditures and divert more resources toward developmental projects.

Opposition slams budget, calls for focus on development, job creation

Mr Zehri also pointed out discrepancies between the budget speech and the announced surplus funds, calling for clarification from the finance minister. He noted that some budget documents were missing on the budget day, particularly “Volume 8”, which is crucial for discussing government expenditures.

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He noted that although Rs16 billion has been allocated for the agriculture sector, there is no clear mechanism for how these funds will be spent. Regarding education, Mr Zehri said that while Rs100bn has been allocated, there must be accountability, proper monitoring, and the honest and judicious use of funds.

He proposed the formation of a task force to oversee educational reforms and ensure transparency.

He said the allocation for the Public Health Engineering Department is inadequate and stressed the need for equitable distribution of water-related resources across all districts. Mr Zehri also called for an increase in the livestock budget and expressed concern over the Rs42bn allocated for local governments under non-development expenditures, which he said lacked transparency.

He expressed concern over the low allocation of Rs6bn for the industrial sector and sought clarity on the utilisation of these funds.

Maulana Hidayat-ur-Rehman of Jamaat-i-Islami also criticised the government for neglecting key issues such as healthcare, education, poverty and access to clean drinking water. He pointed out that although 6,000 development schemes are included in the budget, 3,000 have been pending for years.

Mr Rehman also echoed concerns over the limited job opportunities for the youth, emphasising that the 6,000 vacancies mentioned in the budget are insufficient given the three million unemployed young people in the province.

The JI leader also criticised the closure of the border with Iran, which he said has rendered thousands of people jobless. He urged the federal government to create employment opportunities for the people of Balochistan.

Published in Dawn, June 21th, 2025