KPK should improve tax collections, cut non-developmental expanses

Lahore : Federal government should not delay transfer of funds to the province of Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa otherwise it will hit ongoing developmental schemes and widen the budget deficit, a business leader said Monday.

The provinces gets ninety two percent of its revenue requirements from federal government and the failure of FBR to collect annual target will further hit the transfer of funds, said Chairman of FPCCI Regional Committee on Industries Atif Ikram Sheikh.

He said that federal government has planned to pay Rs293 billion under different heads but it paid only Rs136.78 in the first six months while it paid Rs17.70 billion as hydel profit which was fixed at Rs33 billion.

The situation has a negative impact on the economy of the underdeveloped province which has so far collected Rs10.78 billion as tax and non-tax revenue against the target of around Rs50 billion, said Atif Ikram Sheikh.

The business leader said that province is collecting around Rs7 billion under GST since last three years while non-developmental expenditure has jumped by 26 percent.

Less than one hundred people pay agricultural tax in the province which indicate lack of capacity among the tax collecting administration which must be improved to reduce dependence on federal transfers, he said.

He noted that oil and gas and other minerals worth billions of dollars are available in the province which can change the fate of the country and there is an urgent need to exploit these reserves.