"FEDERAL BUDGET - AN INSIGHT" ---- By Imad Ud Din

Where the Federal Budget this year shows an ascent by 7%, a total outlay of 4.39 Billion, at the same time there is a downfall in basic establishments of the country. A further rise is seen in grievances by provincial governments and privation of fundamental rights, and why won't there be, where we see the budget allocated for Punjab as 51 % whereas Sindh 24.5 % Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 14.6 % and Baluchistan as just 9.09 % , indicating the Punjab budget still more than the rest of Pakistan if summed up. This is an absolute discrimination injustice and inequity.

Another view of this gives us a blink of Punjab as even a separate country and the three others making a country of their own. The budget allocated this way is seriously depriving the nation's other parts and taking them to the verge, hindrance their proceedings towards sheer development and yet again depriving the masses from even basic facilities on a large scale.

Keeping the grievances and privations apart, the increase from 780bn to 860bn for defense as to cope with Terrorism, cross borders conflicts and employees related expenditures for Navy , Army, and Air force, is rather a bigger challenge to Health and Education , that of health is downed from 2bn to just 12bn and education budget downed from 2.2 to 2 % further decreased from last year budget. Keeping this in view what else can we expect of any betterment in health and education sector? The infrastructure and quality related to education can even not be maintained within this amount allocated for. The same goes for health sector and hence they both will suffer an unbearable downfall.

Though there is a rise in GDP this year by 4.3 % which is further deterred by industrial side by 6.8 % yet again the Government has failed to distribute it properly and spend it rightly where actually needed. 

This may give a better target of more employment in country for the next year if utilized properly. The Central Government has rather been cruel in allocating the budget for other provinces. For their own benefits and betterment of the nation this budget was supposed to be distributed on equal basis to overcome all such grievances not just with the parliamentarians rather with public as a whole, for the fundamental productions like electricity and water and so the Gas is transported from these provinces.

The Central Government utterly failed to provide it justly and equally. The budget allocated for defense is increasing every year. Government should be more focused upon its foreign policy and bilateral relations to overcome this imbalance in economy and strategic position.   

Besides the distribution made for health and education is surely rather a folly as they are the basic demand of the day but unfortunately the institutions and Government as a whole is depriving the nation from these and are failed to provide a sustained budget system.