ISLAMABAD: Federal Finance Minister Ishaq Dar discussed with Punjab Finance Minister Dr Ayesha Ghous Pasha the matters related to provincial budget surpluses and setting up of a mechanism for settling mutual claims on adjustment of sales tax on goods and services between the federal and provincial governments.
The meeting also discussed other matters such as past claims on maintenance of national wheat reserves, payment of salaries of staff of vertical programs, sharing of subsidy of Rawalpindi-Islamabad metro bus service, payments on account of net hydel profit.
The finance minister stressed the need for timely decisions making and improving financial management as well as removing bottlenecks that impede expeditious service delivery.
He said that lack of timely decisions had led to piling up of a number of complicated issues during the past many years. He said that the present government had resolved many such longstanding issues. He referred to the example of resolution of net hydel profit issue with the government of KP and said that the arrangement agreed in that case serves as a model for other provinces as well.
He emphasized that the provinces had received sufficient resources under the last NFC award and the increased revenue collection during the present government’s tenure had increased the provincial revenues drastically allowing the provincial governments to undertake projects and activities of public interest.
Finance Minister Punjab informed the meeting about the province’s achievements on revenue mobilization as well as improving financial management. Senior officials of Ministries of Finance, FBR, CADD, Food Security, NHS&RC, Water & Power and heads of provincial departments of Finance, Energy, Food and Revenue participated in the meeting.
