MUZAFFARABAD, June 20: Azad Jammu and Kashmir's budget for the fiscal year 2007-08 will be presented in the Legislative Assembly here on Thursday by Finance Minister Raja Nisar Ahmed Khan.

With a total outlay of Rs25.32 billion, it will be most likely a tax free budget. It proposes Rs7.8 billion for the state's development programme and Rs17.52 billion for non-development expenditures.

The total volume of next year's budget is 26 per cent more than the current year's budget and the size of Annual Developmental Programme is 30 per cent more than the current year's ADP.

However, the budget envisages a deficit of Rs4.95 billion. In the ongoing (revised) budget, the deficit has sharply risen to Rs5.56bn from Rs3.15 billion.

Official sources said that apart from the state's own ADP, the federal government would spend around Rs34 billion on different ongoing projects from the Federal Public Sector Development Programme (FPSDP).

Additionally, the Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (Erra) would also spend 60 per cent of Rs35 billion in the quake-hit areas of AJK. The remaining 40 per cent will be spent in the quake affected areas of NWFP.