LAHORE: The government has turned down a plan of granting five-year tax break to new authorities to look after the affairs of airports and aviation under outsourcing of major airports of the country.
The government plans to segregate Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) by setting up two separate authorities namely Pakistan Civil Aviation Regulatory Authority (PCARA) and Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA).
The Aviation Division had tabled a plan before the cabinet to grant tax exemptions to two new authorities for five years. However, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) had opposed this tax break.
The Aviation Division informed the cabinet in a recent meeting that it had earlier ratified two bills namely Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority Act, 2021, and Pakistan Airports Authority Act, 2021, on recommendations of the Cabinet Committee for Disposal of Legislative Cases (CCLC). Subsequently, however, it was directed that the two bills be processed as ordinances.
The Law and Justice Division, while vetting the two draft ordinances advised the Aviation Division to get, approval in principle, of the federal cabinet in terms of Rule 16 (1) (a) read with Rule 27, Rules of Business, 1973.
Since the contents of the two draft ordinances were already cleared by the CCLC in the form of bills, exemption from re-submission of the draft ordinances before the CCLC was sought from the prime minister.