ISLAMABAD, March 31 (APP): Finance Minister Senator Muhammad
Ishaq Dar held a meeting with Punjab Finance Minister Dr Ayesha
Ghous Pasha here on Thursday and discussed 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.
They 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.
Ishaq Dar 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 Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and said that the
arrangement agreed in that case served 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.
The Punjab minister informed Ishaq Dar 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.