MIRPUR (AJK): In Azad Jammu Kashmir financial experts, economists as well as members of business community, especially the common masses, have widely welcomed the federal budget for the new fiscal year 2017-18, terming it as balanced, development-oriented budget supportive of the overall economy of Pakistan.
“This is a people-friendly and broad-based development-oriented budget inked by the PML (N) governmentâ€, observed Ch. Muhammad Saeed, the businessman-turned-politician and also the sitting minister for sports, culture and youth government of AJK.
Ch. Saeed, also former President of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry, while talking to this Correspondent said, “It is balanced budget as at on one hand it has been tried to alleviate the poverty, unemployment through raising the minimum salaries of the working class / laborers – but also made 10 percent increase in salaries of the government employees as well as the pensioners while on the other by enhancing the GDP growth and addressing the debt circular, country would be put on path of speedy progress and prosperityâ€.The AJK minister opined that by increasing the export surplus, the country will not only be able to successfully meet the trade gap and also help the debt servicing by increasing the exports to greater extent. Ch. Muhammad Saeed highly appreciated the high and great gesture shown by the government of Pakistan through doubling the funds for the annual development expenditures for Azad Jammu Kashmir. Appreciating salient features, Saeed continued that the government has focused on the uplift of the basic infrastructure in the budget to benefit all sectors of life through raising the per capita income by 30 percent. “Youth and women development programs designed through doubling funds to Rs. 121 billion under Benazir Income Support Programs for the new fiscal year is also another more attractive feature of the new financial year budgetâ€, Ch. Saeed said. He underlined that at least 2. 50 talented students would be benefited of the program through the scholarships for continuing further studies.He said that fixed rate on agricultural production will lead to increase in per acre yield besides giving an impetus to the over all agricultural development in the country, he observed. Ch. Saeed said that it was for the first time in the history of AJK that the federal government moved towards 4 Ds by fixing priorities for Development – besides Defense and Deficit. He termed it the development oriented budget. Saeed also appreciated the allocation of funds for the timely completion of 969 mw Neelam Jhelum Hydel Power Project and for the up gradation of Mangla Power House besides for the development of hydro power sector with prime focus to add 10 thousand megawatt of power to the national grid by the first quarter of next year.
Welcoming the budget, President AJK Chamber of Commerce & Industry Sohaib Saeed stated that incentives to the prospective investors may attract huge local and investment in the industrial sector across the country. This, he hoped, may help to address the issues of unemployment and additional revenue generation through launching of various development projects in trade, industrial and hydropower sectors for the overall socio economic progress of the country. Sohaib told this scribe that allocation of due share to the provinces besides doubling the development funds for AJK to the tune of over Rs. 22 billion and the allocation due development funds for Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) was an excellent step by the government.
He further said that allocation of funds for the laptops for youth will lead to overall improvement in the quality of education besides promoting the information technology humorous to the need of the modern age.
He hoped that under the present government Pakistan would achieve new heights of economic prosperity besides achieving all goals and targets announced by the ruling party in its manifesto.
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