PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister appreciated the Provincial Budget for year 2024-25 while the leader of the Opposition in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Dr Ibadullah criticized the provincial budget 2024-25 on Friday and termed the budget “based on assumptions”.
Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur on Friday said that despite the difficult financial situation, the provincial government prepared an excellent and public welfare budget 2024-25 according to the party vision.
 “We have presented a surplus budget of 100 billion rupees,” he said and appreciated the role of all the departments especially the finance and planning department in the regard.
The CM said that everyone has to work together to implement the public welfare and corrective measures included in the budget, all departments in this regard.
He emphasized on ensuring progress within stipulated time adding the budget was prepared after hectic efforts much and determination and hoped its implementation in letter and spirit by all the stakeholders.Â
Gandapur said that special attention was paid to increasing the revenue of the province and improving the efficiency of the departments.
For this purpose he said the throw-forward of the annual development program was reduced from 13 years to six years which he said was great achievement of the provincial government.
He said this initiative would enable development projects to be completed within the stipulated time. The Chief Minister further said that attention was also given to improving the governance, to bring forward the sectors which were left behind due to any reason.
“We are introducing such reforms that will prove better for the province and future generations.,” he noted. He said the provincial taxes imposed on transfers of properties were reduced and expected same from the federal government.Â
 He said that in the new provincial budget, measures had been proposed to keep the tax rate low while increasing the tax net. The Chief Minister said that he would spend considerable funds from his own resources on the development of the merged districts.Â
He vowed to gradually use all the available legal options to collect the outstanding dues from the federal government under different heads.
Talking to media here in assembly premises after the budget, he said the provincial government claimed that it had presented the budget while breaking the tradition, while there was nothing new for the people in the budget.
He said that the finance minister himself had admitted that the KP government was depending 92 percent on the federal government and they did not get money so far than how could they claim to present a surplus budget.
He said that Rs 300 billion supplementary budget was presented to hide corruption of the government.
Ibadaullah said that the budget had no relief for common man rather it was just manipulation of words. He said that now the government would hurry to get the budget passed before June 3rd.
The opposition leader said that allocation of Rs 2.5 billion subsidy for BRT was unjustified adding that so many schools could be built in this amount.
