WASA tightens noose on defaulters
The Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) has exceeded its revenue recovery target by collecting Rs1,697 million (Rs1.697 billion) over the past eight months, compared to the set target of Rs1,581m. The agency has decided to tighten its actions against defaulters by disconnecting their water supply connections and sewerage services.
A meeting to review WASA's revenue recovery performance was held under the chairmanship of Managing Director Muhammad Saleem Ashraf. The meeting was attended by the Director of Revenue, Deputy Director of Revenue, and other relevant revenue staff.
During the meeting, the Director of Revenue presented a report. The MD said that the revenue recovery target for the first eight months of the current financial year was Rs1,581m, but as of February 28, 2025, Rs1,697m had been recovered, exceeding the target by Rs116m.
Furthermore, last month, a record recovery of over Rs250m was made, and so far this month, over Rs210m has been recovered despite the ongoing month of Ramazan. Ashraf expressed confidence that the recovery target would be met in the coming days.
During the meeting, the MD praised the staff and officers who demonstrated excellent performance in revenue recovery and commended their efforts.
At the same time, staff and officers with lower recovery rates were warned and instructed to improve their performance. The MD emphasised that WASA is a self-financing institution and that all its expenses were met through its own resources, so there would be no tolerance for any shortfall in revenue recovery. The MD gave a special ultimatum to all officers to ensure 100% recovery of dues from defaulters and instructed the Revenue Director and Deputy Directors to immediately disconnect the services of defaulters.
The MD also announced that this would be the final warning for defaulters to clear their outstanding dues. After this, penalties for late fees, restrictions on installment payments, property confiscation, arrests, and disconnection of water and sewerage services would be enforced.
He urged WASA customers to pay their dues on time to demonstrate responsible citizenship. He also reaffirmed his commitment that the crackdown would continue until the last defaulter is dealt with, stressing that no pressure would be tolerated in this regard.
The Managing Director also assured the public that the crackdown on defaulters would be carried out with full transparency and accountability. He urged all WASA customers to cooperate by settling their outstanding bills promptly to avoid the penalties and service disruptions.
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Express Tribune
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Rs1tr PSDP marked by political priorities
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Business Recorder
6 hours ago
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Rs17.6trn FY26 Budget unveiled under the shadows of IMF conditions, US tariff tensions and war threat
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The Special Conveyance Allowance of 4,000 rupees monthly for special persons will be increased to 6,000 rupees. Further, 30 percent Disparity Reduction Allowance for deserving government employees has been proposed in the budget. The Armed Forces of Pakistan have rendered exemplary services for the defence of the motherland, said the minister, adding that in recognition of their services, it has been proposed to give a Special Relief Allowance to the officers, JCOs and soldiers of the Armed Forces of Pakistan. These expenditures will be met from the allocated Defence Budget of 2025-26. The federal government has proposed a significant increase in the defence budget for the upcoming fiscal year, allocating a total of Rs2,550 billion. 'The spirit with which we protected our national sovereignty, we need to ensure our financial security in the same way,' he maintained. 'Pakistan has now achieved economic stability and is moving towards a Pakistan that is prosperous,' he added. 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Talking about relief measures to ease taxes on the corporate sector, Aurangzeb said a reduction of 0.5 per cent in the super tax has been proposed for the corporations generating 200 million to 500 million rupees annual income. He said this concession indicates government's resolve to rationalise the ratio of the corporate tax. The minister said withholding tax on purchase of property is being reduced from four per cent to 2.5 per cent and 3.5 per cent to 2.5 per cent as well as three per cent to 1.5 per cent. He said there is proposal to completely abolish the Federal Excise Duty (FED) up to seven per cent on the transfer of commercial properties, plots and houses to lessen burden on the construction sector. To encourage mortgage for the provision of loan on low-cost housing, tax credit is being introduced on houses up to 10 marlas and flats of 2,000 square feet. He said the government would promote mortgage financing and comprehensive mechanism would be introduced in that regard. Aurangzeb said stamp paper duty on purchase of property in Islamabad Capital Territory would be reduced from four per cent to one per cent so that shortage of houses could be addressed. He expressed the confidences that these measures will accelerate the housing sector, enabling it to play its due role in the economic development of the country. The government, in its bid to promote horizontal equity has proposed to raise tax rate on interest income from 15 per cent to 20 per cent. The government has proposed Rs16,286 billion for current expenditure in the budget for fiscal year 2026 budget, a 5.33 per cent decrease from the outgoing fiscal year. Civil administration expenditure would be Rs0.97 trillion, pension expenditure Rs1.06 billion, power and other sectors Rs1.19 billion. He said 971 billion rupees are being allocated for the civil administration expenditures, while 1,055 billion rupees have been reserved for the pension expenditures. 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The finance minister said it has been proposed to impose 'carbon levy' at the rate of 2.5 rupees per litre on furnace oil, high-speed diesel and petrol with the aim to discourage the use of fossil fuel and ensure availability of financial resources for climate change and Green Energy programmes. He said this levy will be enhanced to five rupees per litre in the fiscal year 2026-27. The budget also envisages enforcement measures under FED. The finance minister said it has been proposed to seize those items having no barcodes or original tax stamps under Track and Trace System. He said enforcement powers are also being delegated under FED to the particular provincial officers in small cities and rural areas in view of limited presence of FBR. He said this step is especially aimed at effectively curbing the smuggling of non-duty paid cigarettes. New taxation measures include a five per cent income tax on annual pensions exceeding 10 million rupees. The tax on cash withdrawals by non-filers has been increased from 0.6 per cent to one per cent. An 18 per cent sales tax will be imposed on small vehicles up to 850cc, aiming to bring uniformity in sales tax on petrol, diesel, and hybrid vehicles. The government plans to take strict measures against unregistered businesses. Bank accounts of such businesses will be frozen, and there will be a ban on property transfers. In severe cases, business premises can be sealed and goods confiscated. However, businesses will have the right to appeal within 30 days. The finance minister proposed that Balochistan and the merged districts in KP, which 'had a leeway with taxes for the past seven years', were now to pay sales tax starting from 10 per cent for five years. However, noting that the agriculture sector was the economy's engine of growth, Aurangzeb said no further tax on fertiliser and pesticides was being mulled. He warned that those committing theft in sales tax would face strict punishments, with the right to appeal. An automated risk-based income tax adjustment would be introduced to prevent the misuse of the income tax system. He said that foreign vendors from countries having no bilateral tax agreements with Pakistan could be taxed. 'A five per cent tax on items from foreign vendors has been proposed.' Petrol, diesel and hybrid cars that were excluded from an 18 per cent sales tax would now be hit with the same tax as well, the minister said. The government has proposed several tax measures in the federal budget for the financial year 2025-26, aiming to increase revenue and bring various sectors into the tax net. One key decision is to impose tax on e-commerce or online businesses and shoppers, bringing online transactions under the tax umbrella. Individuals or companies selling goods or services through online platforms will be subject to 18 per cent tax, and tax will also be applicable on goods and services ordered online. E-commerce businesses will be required to submit detailed data and tax reports of their monthly transactions to relevant authorities. Additionally, the budget proposes a 25 per cent tax on income earned on debt, while the tax rate on profits earned on shares remains unchanged. The federal government has announced plans to expand the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) with a proposed 21 per cent increase in allocation, bringing the total to Rs716 billion. As part of this expansion, the Kafaalat program under BISP will be extended to cover 10 million families, providing financial support to more households in need. The classification of all state-owned enterprises (SOEs) under SOE reforms has been finalised. Inefficient SOEs have been costing the government over Rs800 billion annually, and reforms aim to reduce these losses. Privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and the Roosevelt Hotel is scheduled for the next fiscal year, and privatisation efforts for power distribution companies (DISCOs) and generation companies (GENCOs) will continue. The Cabinet has approved downsizing staff in 10 federal ministries, with a total of 45 government entities marked for privatisation or closure, he added. The minister said 390,000 high-value non-filers of tax were identified through data integration, with Rs300m recovered. The minister highlighted that there was a 100pc increase in the number of tax filers, taking the revenues to Rs105 billion. 'For the first time, the IMF has acknowledged Rs389 billion revenues through law enforcement,' he said. The minister said those who were raising alarm about a mini-budget, no such move had been taken by the government. The finance minister said that there was a 31 per cent reduction in electricity prices, as well as 50 per cent reduction in prices for protected consumers. The minister said that the government had made plans to procure cheap energy. Noting the closure of costly power plants and reforms in the oil and gas sector, he said Turkish and other international companies were willing to invest in Pakistan. He mentioned the $5 billion investment pledge by RekoDiq and pointed out fuel price deregulation aimed to promote competition. 'Gold mines in RekoDiq are a key part of our future. The plan's feasibility study was completed in January,' he noted. 'We expect $71 billion in cash flows as well as $7 billion in tax and $8 billion in royalties,' he said, terming the project a 'game changer'. 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He affirmed that the government was taking steps for overseas Pakistanis, including an online system, civil procedure laws to prevent fraud, a quota in chartered medical schools, and civil awards for the top 15 senders. Speaking about the agricultural sector, Aurangzeb said Rs2.64 billion were earned in fiscal year 2024-25, adding that the National Seed Policy 2025 and the National Agri Technology Policy 2025 had been 'nearly approved'. The minister also praised the Strategic Investment and Facilitation Council (SIFC) for taking forward 'strategic Brownfield and Greenfield projects'. 'Inter-provincial and inter-federal connection improved,' he added. Aurangzeb stressed the need for the country to increase its water reservoirs and ensure water security. Under the 2018 National Water Policy, he mentioned the goals of 10m-acre increase in water storage, 35 per cent reduction in water waste and 30 per cent increase in water-use efficiency. He detailed that Rs133 billion would be allocated for projects, Rs34 billion for investment and Rs2 billion for 15 key schemes, detailing the breakdown for various dams. The minister said that the government needed to ensure the provision of cheap energy. He said that 47 schemes and Rs90.2 billion were allocated to the energy sector, including Rs840m for the Tarbela 5th Extension, Rs10.9 billion for the Dasu hydel project, Rs3.5 billion for the 884MW Suki-Kinari Hydropower Project, and Rs35.7 billion for the Mohmand hydel dam. The allocations for other power projects included Rs4.4 billion for the Allama Iqbal Industrial City grid station, Rs1.1bn for the Quaid-i-Azam Business Park, Rs1.6bn for the 100KVA and 200KVA transformers asset performance management system, Rs2.9 billion for the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO) advanced metering infrastructure, Rs1.8bn for the Multan Electric Power Company (MEPCO), Rs1.9 billion for the Hyderabad, Rs2.4 billion for the Peshawar, Rs67.2bn for the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) clean electricity scheme, Rs3bn for five energy schemes of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, and 1.2 billion for GB grids. 'Genetic improvement and post-harvest processes will be focused on,' he said, adding that a total of 1,000 agriculture graduates had been sent to China on government-funded programmes. He also announced five new livestock schemes. Aurangzeb said the Higher Education Commission (HEC) would be receiving Rs39.5 billion for 170 projects, of which, Rs38.5 billion would be set aside for the provinces. Aurangzeb said the a total of 164 billion rupees have been earmarked in the PSDP 2025-26 for the Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan and merged districts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Forty-eight billion rupees each has been allocated for Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan while sixty-eight billion rupees have been reserved for merged districts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. He further said the federal government has made block allocations of 32 billion rupees for Azad Jammu and Kashmir, 22 billion rupees for Gilgit-Baltistan and 65 billion rupees for merged districts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and 10-year erstwhile FATA plan under the Annual Development Plan. Besides, the federal government has allocated five billion rupees for Azad Jammu and Kashmir and four billion rupees for Gilgit-Baltistan as Prime Minister's Special Package. The minister said that the government has formulated a new Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy aimed at promoting the use of two- and three-wheeled EVs over traditional petrol and diesel-powered vehicles. 'This initiative seeks to reduce environmental pollution while decreasing the country's reliance on imported fossil fuels,' he added. Highlighting the key features of the EV Policy, he said that the policy encourages the manufacturing and sale of electric two- and three-wheelers by introducing a levy on petrol and diesel vehicles. The levy will be applied at varying rates based on engine power, affecting both local sales and imports of fossil fuel-based vehicles. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Business Recorder
7 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Rs1trn set aside for PSDP
ISLAMABAD: The budget 2025-26 allocated Rs1,000 billion for federal Public Sector Development Programme while provincial Annual Development Plans earmarked 2,869 billion. A separate allocation has been envisaged for state-owned entities, ie, Rs355 billion against Rs196.839 billion last fiscal year. The budgeted allocation for 2024-25 was Rs1,400 billion and the current year is lower allocation which indicates a decline of 28.5 percent next fiscal year. During the year the government reduced it to Rs1.1 trillion due to narrow fiscal space. The highest allocation under the PSDP has been earmarked for transport at Ra 225 billion with roads (Quetta-Karachi dualisation, Sukkur Hyderabad motorway, Eastbay Expressway accounting for a total cost of 501 billion rupees), water resources 184 billion rupees in spite of Pakistan being a water stressed country and climate allocated a mere 5.26 billion rupees though Pakistan is a major climate stressed country. Budget 2025-26: Pakistan targets 4.2% growth as Aurangzeb presents proposals 'for a competitive economy' Climate resilience projects include urban flood strategy and spatial planning 106 million rupees, green Pakistan 2.25 billion rupees, green skills and innovation 450 million rupees and biosafety and SDG reporting 300 million rupees. Three ongoing dams have been allocated the following amounts: Bhasha dam 60 billion rupees, Dasu 20 billion rupees, Mohmand 15 billion rupees while K-IV electric water supply has been budgeted 12 billion rupees and rural electrification and solarisation 10 billion rupees. Merged districts have been allocated a budget of 70 billion rupees and special areas (AJK and GB) 74.5 billion rupees. Health services which witnessed a major inflationary impact last fiscal year are budgeted at 24.7 billion rupees while IT and telecom, with potential to emerge as a major source of foreign exchange earnings budgeted at 23 billion rupees. The government has budgeted 61 billion rupees for Higher Education Commission, 4.7 billion rupees for NAVTTC Skill programme, 14 billion rupees for Pakistan Education Endowment, 5 billion rupees for cancer hospital Islamabad and 10 billion rupees for hepatitis and diabetes control. The PSDP handout states that Uraan Pakistan, a vision for the future, is our pledge, with no region ignored, no citizen forgotten, no potential wasted. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
