Sindh presents Rs3.4 trillion budget; education, public welfare in focus

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah is presenting the annual provincial budget FY2025-26, at Sindh Assembly. The budget size has been set at Rs 3,451.87 billion, which is 12.9 per cent higher than the Rs 3,056.3 billion budget for the previous fiscal year 2024-25.

Among the major announcements, is the 12 per cent increase in salaries of employees from Grade 1 to 16, while the salaries of employees from Grade 17 to 22 have been increase by 10 per cent.

The Chief Minister announced an 8 per cent increase in pensions as well. Additional funds have been allocated for education, health, infrastructure and welfare sectors in the budget.

The CM has also announced measures to modernize governance and promote the economy, in addition to Rs 2,149.4 billion have been allocated in the budget for ongoing expenditure. As compared to this, last year’s ongoing expenditure was Rs 1,912.36 billion, so this year shows an increase of 12.4 per cent.

Additional grants have been given for hospitals, universities and infrastructure, along with relief allowance for government employees.

The budget for education has been hiked by 12.4 per cent, at Rs 523.73 billion. In total, education takes 25.3 per cent of the total ongoing expenditure. The provincial government has also decided to recruit 4,400 teachers and staff in the new financial year.

Four IBA community colleges will also be established. Separate budget and expenses will be provided to more than 34,100 primary schools, and Rs 2 billion has been allocated to Sindh Educational Endowment Fund to support poor and talented students.

Differently Abled Persons Development Program’s budget has been increased from Rs 11.6 billion to Rs 17.3 billion. The allocated amount will support assistive devices, scholarships and partnerships with NGOs.

A budget of Rs 326.5 billion has been allocated for health, which is eight per cent higher than the previous year’s Rs 302.2 billion. Out of this, Rs 146.9 billion will be given as grants to health institutions and units, while Rs 19 billion has been allocated for Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT), Rs 16.5 billion for People’s Primary Health Initiative (PPHI), and Rs 10 billion for a new hospital in Larkana.

Ambulance service and mobile diagnostic units will also be extended to rural areas, the chief minister has announced.

Moreover, 20 per cent reduction has been announced in annual development program due to expected reduction in fiscal transfers cuts. This year’s annual development program has been reduced to Rs 520 billion.

CM Murad Ali Shah also announced the decision to launch 475 new schemes for flood-prone areas, renewable energy, backward districts, clean water and sanitation facilities.

Special focus has been placed on the development of Karachi in the new budget, Sindh CM said, adding that large-scale projects for improving infrastructure in Karachi are included in the budget. He said that funds have been allocated for road repair, sewerage and water supply systems, and the urban transport in Karachi will also be expanded.

Pakistan’s first 50 electric buses will also be introduced in Karachi, he said, adding that 100 more buses will be added to Karachi’s electric bus fleet by August 2025.

New schemes have been introduced in the annual development plan for restoration of historical sites, improvement of business areas and construction of important roads, along with measures for digital governance.

Central KPI monitoring dashboard will be launched for direct monitoring of projects, and land records will be transferred to blockchain to improve transparency and ease in transactions. Digital birth registration system will be introduced with a target of 100 per cent coverage by 2028. This digital birth registration system will also be linked with health and education data.

Benazir Hari Card will be issued to provide subsidies and modern agricultural machinery to more than 200,000 farmers in Sindh, along with subsidies on drip irrigation to promote environmentally safe agriculture.

Cluster farming project will be launched under public-private partnership, Sindh CM said.

Special grants will also be provided for lawyers, journalists and minorities in the form of welfare and development measures, CM Murad Ali Shah said.

Also read: Punjab to unveil Rs 1,200b development budget for FY2026; draft prepared