Our Correspondent Quetta
The Balochistan government has unveiled its budget worth Rs584 billion for the fiscal year 2021-22 with a total development outlay of Rs237 billion without imposing a new tax on Friday.
The budget session of the Balochistan Assembly commenced under the chair of Speaker Abdul Quddus Bizenjo amid the protest of the opposition lawmakers outside the assembly’s building.
Balochistan Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan, Finance Minister Zahoor Ahmed Buledi and other government lawmakers were also present in the session.
During his speech, Balochistan Finance Minister Zahoor Ahmed Buledi said that the government is presenting a balanced budget for the new fiscal year.
It has been suggested to allocate Rs3.6 billion in the new budget to combat coronavirus pandemic, whereas, the province aims to vaccinate all citizens and Rs500 million will be spent for the expansion of the children hospital, he added.
The government announced to end slip system from all state-administered hospitals across the province, whereas, emergency centres are being established alongside roads.
An amount of Rs5.5 billion has been allocated for the health insurance card program by the provincial government.
More than Rs76 billion has been allocated for the initiation of 2,086 new schemes, announced Buledi and “Rs200 million is allocated for the construction of two new hostels in Bolan Medical College; more than 200 government schools will be upgraded; Rs112 billion for ongoing development schemes while the budgeted development outlay is Rs189.19 billion for the new fiscal year.”
The government employees will get a salary raise up to 10 per cent, announced the finance minister.
Meanwhile, Balo-chistan Assembly witnessed chaotic scenes after opposition lawmakers staged a sit-in outside the assembly and locked all its entrance gates with chains.
The disgruntled lawmakers were protesting to stop the provincial government from presenting the budget.
“We will not let the budget to be passed until our demands are met,” the protesting lawmakers said.
The sit-in has been staged against the “disregard for opposition constituencies and release of funds to unelected persons”.
The lawmakers also clashed with the police after they attempted to disperse them and smashed the main entrance gate of the assembly building with armoured vehicle.
Resultantly, three BNP MPAs Babu Abdul Raheem, Ahmed Nawaz and Shakila Naveed Dhewar and one JUI-F MPA, Abdul Wahid Siddique sustained injuries.
Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan and other ministers and MPAs of the ruling coalition entered the assembly hall using the UBL bank gate entrance.
During the stampede, the chief minister was also hit with a flower pot as police resorted to baton-charge and tear gas to disperse the protesting lawmakers.
The opposition members have called for a province-wide strike on Saturday against the ‘anti-people budget’.
Meanwhile, workers of main opposition parties Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, Balochistan National Party and Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party blocked nearly all highways in a protest against “the neglect of opposition constituencies in the provincial budget”.
The workers of the parties staged sit-ins at all national highways, including highway in Chaman, Quetta-Karachi International Highway, Zhob-DI Khan, Gwadar coastal highway.
The closure of national highways caused severe hardships to the people, especially women and children.
The highways remained closed from 7:00 am to 2:00 pm, as was decided in the announcement of the protest a day earlier.
