110 billion increase in Defence budget

[sparklingway]

Note that expenditure is to "officially" increase by another 110 billion. Principal Economic Adviser Sakib Sherani had said that actual defence budget is not 442 but 675 billion - WoT is under an entirely different head.

Govt projects Rs 110bn increase in defence budget​

By Sajid Chaudhry

ISLAMABAD: The government has projected an increase of Rs 110 billion in the defence budget and informed the International Monetary Fund that according to the post-flood situation, the defence budget will be Rs 552 billion against the budgetary allocation of Rs 442 billion for the ongoing fiscal year 2010-11.

This increase in the defence budget has been projected by the government at a time when development and non-development budgets of the civil government are being slashed by 50 percent and 20 percent respectively to create fiscal space for the rehabilitation of the flood-affected population.

This has been disclosed in the country’s revised consolidated government budget projections, which had been submitted to the IMF Executive Board and were subsequently released by the IMF on Wednesday.

The Public Sector Development Programme of the federal government is projected to be decreased from Rs 280 billion to Rs 250 billion and provinces’ annual development plans to be reduced from Rs 370 billion to Rs 340 billion to ensure a saving of Rs 60 billion.

The consolidated expenditures of the federal and provincial governments are to increase from Rs 3.259 trillion to Rs 3.292 trillion with an addition of Rs 33 billion after the floods. Total revenues are to be increased from Rs 2.574 trillion to Rs 2.607 trillion, projecting an increase of Rs 33 billion in the post-flood scenario.

The other major revision in the budgetary projections for 2010-11, the federal tax collection is to be revised to Rs 1.689 trillion from the earlier approved target of Rs 1.667 trillion for 2010-11, with an increase of Rs 22 billion.

Similarly, individual tax collection targets have also been projected to be revised accordingly. The target for the direct taxes has been projected to increase from Rs 657.7 billion to Rs 736 billion, projecting an increase of Rs 78.3 billion. The target for the General Sales Tax is to be revised downwards from Rs 674.9 billion to Rs 639 billion, projecting a decrease of Rs 35.9 billion.

Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan

 

[Kompromat]

Not unexpected , given the situation it is very important which also includes Armed force's deployment in Flood struck areas as well as WOT.

 

[Kompromat]

Note that expenditure is to "officially" increase by another 110 billion. Principal Economic Adviser Sakib Sherani had said that actual defence budget is not 442 but 675 billion - WoT is under an entirely different head.

Which means?

 

[sparklingway]

Which means?

head means what is the name and category of layout defined in the budget and financial documents.

Not unexpected , given the situation it is very important which also includes Armed force's deployment in Flood struck areas as well as WOT.

Fuel charges for any vehicular movement is being paid back to the MoD. Helicopters have similarly been charged for.

Rs 12 billion are to be paid as fuel charges and DA to all soldiers - something unnecessary and that could have been forgiven for this deployment (talking about DA).

 

[Kompromat]

head means what is the name and category of layout defined in the budget and financial documents.



Fuel charges for any vehicular movement is being paid back to the MoD. Helicopters have similarly been charged for.

Rs 12 billion are to be paid as fuel charges and DA to all soldiers - something unnecessary and that could have been forgiven for this deployment (talking about DA).

We could get subsidized fuel once again from KSA but with having zardari in the office that is just a dream.

It just makes me wonder why we ain't exploring Arabian seabed for Oil & gas

 

[sparklingway]

We could get subsidized fuel once again from KSA but with having zardari in the office that is just a dream.

It just makes me wonder why we ain't exploring Arabian seabed for Oil & gas

So again this all is Zardari's fault. I have to say one must have some really weird neural connections to make that link. Pardon my personal jibe, but you're old enough to realize that it's beyond individuals and more about structural issues. Since Zardari is to blame for KSA not giving subsidized loans - I wonder about the reasons - would you give him credit for carving out better trade relationships with China and securing nuclear power plant deals? I don't think you, or most people will.

As it turns out, we checked 9.5 billion as supplementary grants for intelligence agencies that have failed to protect us. Meanwhile, a nation under siege from terror, facing the worst floods ever, cannot find money to subsidize higher education while it has to carve out of the bellies of its people another 110 billion. Frankly, I'm disgusted to the core and do not feel that this is even a debatable issue.

 

[Kompromat]

So again this all is Zardari's fault. I have to say one must have some really weird neural connections to make that link. Pardon my personal jibe, but you're old enough to realize that it's beyond individuals and more about structural issues. Since Zardari is to blame for KSA not giving subsidized loans - I wonder about the reasons - would you give him credit for carving out better trade relationships with China and securing nuclear power plant deals? I don't think you, or most people will.

I must agree but when pointing out to zardari i meant that his office don't have much trust in KSA as any other govt did. Moreover you must admit that whatever we are getting from Chinese are not the efforts of zardari but Gen Kiyani , don't you think so ?

As it turns out, we checked 9.5 billion as supplementary grants for intelligence agencies that have failed to protect us.

You & i both are mature enough to understand that it is impossible to stop hit & run tactics or suicide bombings even for the world's best Intelligence agency ISI. You see United states have spent 7 trillion dollars in Afghanistan and Iraq so far in official figures which didn't include billions of dollars given to CIA in funding known as the "Blind budget". Still it didn't give them any success.

Meanwhile, a nation under siege from terror, facing the worst floods ever, cannot find money to subsidize higher education while it has to carve out of the bellies of its people another 110 billion.

100% with you on this but again , security and survival comes first - God forbids if something happens to the country then what would we be left with ?

Great nations have to make sacrifices dear one ! & we are fortunate enough to be one of them , we will work hard , struggle and eventually make out of this all and will Inshallah emerge stronger than ever.

Frankly, I'm disgusted to the core and do not feel that this is even a debatable issue.

You are not the only one , me and everyone around me is too - we sitting thousands of miles away from our country cry with a bleeding heart for what is going on. But have faith , we are on a track to fulfill our Quaid's dream of making Pakistan "one of the most greatest nation of the world" & to have that Pakistan's security comes first.

Another aspect is that we are being filtered and tested over and over again for some great reason for a great future , every great nation has gone through this process. US , Russia , China , France , Australia , Turkey.

What you and i need to do right now is to keep us (Youth) informed of our weaknesses and powers moreover to educate ourselves for a vibrant future as we soon will be taking matters in our own hands wont we ?

You sound like having a really bad run , relax and make Duaa for yourself and your brothers and sisters in the land of pure and keep doing what you are doing which is spreading information and keeping the morale up.

"We shall rise"

 

[Hutchroy]

Military perks

Military perks​

The question of quite how much the military is taking from the people it serves is only rarely discussed. The issue remains essentially a taboo one, with most choosing to steer clear of the discussion on the defence budget and other "perks" for those in uniform. The revelations before the Public Accounts Committee that retired armed forces personnel were getting Rs72 billion as annual pension under civilian head while retired civilian employees were receiving only Rs18 billion is staggering. The justification given for this by the military representative at the PAC session, who said that a million of the three million receiving pensions under this head were civilians, does not mean very much. The real issue to ponder is that of the disparity and the insertion of the military pensions under the civilian budget.

The matter dates back to a 2001 decision by President Musharraf to remove pensions from the defence budget and include them under the civilian head, thus showing a "cut" in defence spending. What the move does in real terms is disguise just what a big slice of the budgetary pie goes to the military. It is little wonder we have so little left over for development or for social welfare. The change made by Musharraf was a deceitful one. The demands heard at the PAC that the pensions be included once more under the defence head are logical. The change must be made as soon as possible, so that we, as citizens, at least know how money is being spent and to whom it is going. The time has also come to think about whether we can afford to give the military so much and civilians so little, or whether we need to see more effort to introduce an element of equality in the affairs of state.

 

[Hutchroy]

^^^ Earlier Article^^^

Pakistan News Service - PakTribune

Military pension bill Rs72 bn, civilian Rs18 bn, PAC told

ISLAMABAD: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Tuesday stopped short of urging Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to treat the military pension budget as part of the overall defence budget after Secretary Finance Salman Siddique revealed that three million retired armed forces personnel were getting Rs 72 billion annual pension under civilian head as against only Rs 18 billion for 0.5 million retired civilian employees.

 

[deckingraj]

Have couple of doubts regarding your post, so thought of sharing my views

I must agree but when pointing out to zardari i meant that his office don't have much trust in KSA as any other govt did. Moreover you must admit that whatever we are getting from Chinese are not the efforts of zardari but Gen Kiyani , don't you think so ?

I must say that i am not as versed with pakistan's politics as you or other's would be, however IMHO relations(good or bad) b/w countries cannot be attributed to one man...The analogy is the way every good thing cannot be accounted to Zardari/his party alone the same argument should be used for blaming him.....I have heard many comments about Pakistan doing good economically under Musharraf era and doing bad under Zardari, however often people forget that Musharraf brought in stability because he had Army, ISI and politics under his control...After him came the political instability and results are in front of us...Mind it i by no means is saying that Zardari is not corrupt, however my worry is that people zeal to attribute everything to him and his party for the sorry situation of Pakistan economy often end up overlooking other side of a very obvious and glaring problem.....

You & i both are mature enough to understand that it is impossible to stop hit & run tactics or suicide bombings even for the world's best Intelligence agency ISI. You see United states have spent 7 trillion dollars in Afghanistan and Iraq so far in official figures which didn't include billions of dollars given to CIA in funding known as the "Blind budget". Still it didn't give them any success.

I am sorry but you are missing a basic difference b/w NATO operations in AF and PA army against TTP which is you are working in your own backyard....These are results of some bad policies of the past and believe wherether you like it or not it is nothing but intelligence failure....If people go by your definition then we should expect bombs going off in western countries on daily basis, no??? I am sure you very well know how much temptive targets are countries like UK, US for the likes of Al-Qaeda...However these countries are very safe as compared to our own backyards....Kargil, Mumbai were big intelligence failures of RAW and as a result they get the required whacking....Has this fixed all the gaps in RAW, no for sure, but has it fixed some...YES....it's time ISI get's its due whacking...yes, the intelligence agency have very high regards amont average Pakistani however the way they are praised for good work they should be criticized for bad work....Their job is to make homeland safe no matter how difficult it is and so far they have failed to deliver....Moreover since you are claiming it to be worlds best intelligence agency then don't you think they should live up to the reputation even in this case???

100% with you on this but again , security and survival comes first - God forbids if something happens to the country then what would we be left with ?

You are absolutely right...however learn from your all weather friend china....See where they have reached...and then compare their success with the enemies they had/have....Both the super powers of cold war were after them in one way or another....Also how is your situation different from that of India when China was making news for economy boom and india for bankruptcy???? Mind it i am not on Pak bashing spree here...All i am saying is that there has to be some good things China and India did that even though at tough times they were facing far stronger enemy yet both these giants are now called future economic powers(one already is very close)...

Great nations have to make sacrifices dear one ! & we are fortunate enough to be one of them , we will work hard , struggle and eventually make out of this all and will Inshallah emerge stronger than ever.

All the best

You are not the only one , me and everyone around me is too - we sitting thousands of miles away from our country cry with a bleeding heart for what is going on. But have faith , we are on a track to fulfill our Quaid's dream of making Pakistan "one of the most greatest nation of the world" & to have that Pakistan's security comes first. Another aspect is that we are being filtered and tested over and over again for some great reason for a great future , every great nation has gone through this process. US , Russia , China , France , Australia , Turkey.

I hope your optimism comes out to be true...However there has to be some hard decisions which will bring you on the right track....There has to be some tough economic innovations otherwise there is a saying "there aint no free lunch"..... Look i don't want to challenge your bolded part but increasing defense spending on such a sensitive time when Pak is formally asking for more and more Aid(to get over Flood saga) is not a very smart move...Already the response has been luke warm and this move will not go well with People around the globe...Just look at it from outsider's view point....

"Hmmm so they are spending extra billions on buying state of art weapons and yet they need my money to fix their country devastated by floods....Shoudn't at this time the priority be fixing the country???"

What you and i need to do right now is to keep us (Youth) informed of our weaknesses and powers moreover to educate ourselves for a vibrant future as we soon will be taking matters in our own hands wont we ?

Good move...Along with it challenging your leaders should also be part of campaign for a vibrant future...Pakistan has been in hands of Army people more then civil rule....This has made you quite a strong military power yet not good economically...Why??? There has to be some explanation....Saying politicians looted all the wealth is an easy answer but defnitely not the correct one...no????

You sound like having a really bad run , relax and make Duaa for yourself and your brothers and sisters in the land of pure and keep doing what you are doing which is spreading information and keeping the morale up.

"We shall rise"

Best of Luck.....

 

[pak-marine]

The revelations before the Public Accounts Committee that retired armed forces personnel were getting Rs72 billion as annual pension under civilian head while retired civilian employees were receiving only Rs18 billion is staggering.[/B] .[/B]

wow never knew that a whopping 72 Billion goes to the armys pensions fund

 

[TaimiKhan]

^^^ Earlier Article^^^

Pakistan News Service - PakTribune

Military pension bill Rs72 bn, civilian Rs18 bn, PAC told

ISLAMABAD: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Tuesday stopped short of urging Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to treat the military pension budget as part of the overall defence budget after Secretary Finance Salman Siddique revealed that three million retired armed forces personnel were getting Rs 72 billion annual pension under civilian head as against only Rs 18 billion for 0.5 million retired civilian employees.

One of the major reason the retired armed forces personnel use more pension funds is the large number of them.

A civilian pensioner retires at the age of 60, while armed forces people, jawans plus officers retire at a very young age, thus by the time one civilian setup employee retires, the retired number of armed forces personnel is more. A simple sepoy retires at 38 years age, a Major retires mostly at 45-46 age, thus we have more retired armed forces personnel due to age factor. Even then, retired armed forces personnel are not given their full pension if they are doing some job, so if the govt implements an effective mechanism to keep a track of the retired officers / ORs after retirement job status, lot of money can be saved.

Also, would like to mentioned, that a good amount of pension money goes into the corruption, I did read some corruption related report in the pension system, the amount going into people pocket is staggering, if this corruption is stopped, again we can save mone, resulting in low pension figures.

Plus, can anyone give the break up of the new raise, out of 110B, how much is going where and in which accounts, as operations are on the low side recently, no new major operation launched, thus WoT related operational costs would be low, so where is the raise going ??

 

[Patriot]

The Pension System is same is India - The Indian Armed Forces Pension Funds are not counted in regular Defence Budget having said that the pensions are not that high.My grandfather is a retired colonel and the amount of pension he gets is not that big.Very small and can be easily compared to civilians officers of same grade.

 

[TaimiKhan]

The Pension System is same is India - The Indian Armed Forces Pension Funds are not counted in regular Defence Budget having said that the pensions are not that high.My grandfather is a retired colonel and the amount of pension he gets is not that big.Very small and can be easily compared to civilians officers of same grade.

The main reason of the huge number of armed forces pensioneers, amounts may not differ much, but the numbers make the difference, and the major reason of why armed forces numbers are more, i have given above.

 

[Von Hölle]

From my limited knowledge, I know Pakistan armed forces budget for 2010-11 was Rs 442 Billion(roughly 3% of GDP).

But this does not included certain expenditures such as pension for retired soldiers and NCOs(which is normally included defence budgets), I believe Musharaff had introduces this arrangement during his reign.

So actually Pak defence budget amounts to 675 billion which roughly translates to 4.5% of GDP(assuming GDP=$176Billion)

Now they have further increased the budget by 110 billion, so now defence budget 785 billion(approx $9.2 Billion). This amounts to massive 5.2% of GDP, while health and education combined get a measly 2% of GDP.

Clearly Pakistan's priorities are crystal clear.