QUETTA, June 3: Balochistan’s overdraft stands at Rs15 billion and the province has paid over Rs262.7 million as interest on loan from the State Bank, says provincial Finance Minister Syed Ehsan Shah.

The minister told members of the Balochistan Assembly that the federal government had not allowed Balochistan’s suggestion, which had called for allowing acquisition of loans from the open market at lower interest rates. He said that the proposal had been floated during the meeting of the National Finance Commission.

Speaker Jamal Shah Kakar criticised after the finance minister said that the provincial government had obtained Rs19 billion in loans in the 1990s and paid Rs39 billion as interest and still needed to pay Rs14 billion more.

He termed it unfortunate that the provincial government that was returning loans at high rate interest had been unable to get Rs9 billion in dues from the Sindh government in connection with Hub water in addition to billions of rupees in gas arrears that were outstanding against the federal government.

The finance minister said that the provincial government was facing a financial crisis and said it had to obtain loan from the Asian Development Bank to repay the federal government loan.

Members of opposition Kachkol Ali and Abdur Rahim Ziaratwal criticised the government and said that it was forced to run its affairs on loans while the federal government got Rs78 billion annually in revenue from Sui gas fields.

The speaker told the finance minister to brief legislators so that Balochistan’s financial problems could be taken up with the quarters concerned in Islamabad.

Later, the speaker referred the Societies registration (Balochistan amended) bill 2006 to the standing committee for review.

The home minister placed the accounts report for 2003-04 and audit report for financial receipts for 2003-04 in place of the finance minister.

The session was adjourned till Tuesday.