Peshawar:Advisor to the KP Chief Minister on finance and interprovincial coordination Muzzammil Aslam, in a statement regarding the surplus budget, said that the surplus amount belongs to the provincial government, remains with the provincial government, and it is the province’s prerogative to keep the surplus as a buffer for tough times, for major future projects, or for provincial debt. Muzzammil Aslam said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has saved Rs. 150 billion in the current fiscal year, generating Rs. 60 million profit per day from it, in order to reduce the burden of debt repayment.
He said that if the federal government puts pressure on the province, “we cannot be challenged or blackmailed.” Everyone knows that as a provincial government, we cannot take loans exceeding Rs. 31 billion. If we exceed this limit, the federal government can declare us bankrupt and impose an economic emergency.
Muzzammil Aslam said that for the past 15 months, the province has been operating far more independently than under federal pressure, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa along with PTI are now in a position to present their stance more boldly.
The Finance Advisor said that the province had set a surplus target of Rs. 100 billion for the current fiscal year, but, by the grace of God, we are going to show a surplus of over Rs. 120 billion.
He further said that, in addition, Rs. 35 billion were spent on the Sehat Card (Health Card) and more than 30% was spent on the ADP Plus (Annual Development Program Plus).
He stated that old liabilities were paid off and over Rs. 60 billion in bridge financing was provided for development needs of the merged districts.
Muzzammil Aslam said that for the next year, we have estimated a surplus budget of Rs. 157 billion, with record funds allocated for the ADP and current expenditures.
He said that a surplus budget is not guaranteed—it depends on how much tax the federal government collects and how much of it is transferred to the province. This year, the federal government collected less than Rs. 1 trillion in taxes, due to which our transfers were reduced by Rs. 90 billion. If tax revenues decrease further, our surplus will be wiped out.
Muzzammil Aslam expressed hope that by the end of next year, 40–50% of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s total debt will be funded, adding that it was Imran Khan’s vision to free the country from debt.
He clarified, for the sake of record, that those claiming only Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is generating a surplus while all other provinces are in deficit are misled by propaganda. He said that by March 2025, Punjab will have a surplus of Rs. 441 billion, Sindh Rs. 395 billion, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Rs. 111 billion, and Balochistan Rs. 105 billion.
