PESHAWAR: The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government has decided to present a youth and public-centric budget for the financial year 2026-27, with no new taxes and several relief measures for the common man.
According to Advisor to the Chief Minister on Finance, Muzammil Aslam, the provincial government will neither impose any fresh taxes nor increase existing tax rates. Instead, rates of some taxes will be reduced to provide relief to the people.
Speaking to The Express Tribune in an exclusive interview, Muzammil Aslam said the upcoming budget focuses on empowering the youth and marginalized sections of society. Special schemes will be launched to help young people who cannot afford tickets and visas for jobs abroad. Another scheme will provide easy loans to students unable to pay university admission fees in public sector universities. Similarly, interest-free or easy loan facilities will be introduced for the purchase of two and three-wheelers (electric vehicles). Around Rs50 billion has been earmarked for these youth empowerment loan schemes.
The government has also planned special projects for farmers and small businessmen in the new budget. The province's development budget is set to increase significantly. The advisor revealed that the government intends to allocate over Rs215 billion for development projects in the next financial year and aims to spend even more than the allocated amount.
He pointed out that K-P is the first government in the province's history that consistently spends more than the allocated development budget. In the first year, Rs120 billion was allocated and Rs153 billion was spent. Last year, Rs195 billion was allocated while Rs220 billion is being spent in the current financial year.
On the salary front, the government has decided to bring provincial government employees' salaries at par with the federal government. The salary budget, which stood at Rs70 billion last year, may increase to Rs75 billion in the next budget. The final decision regarding salary increases will be taken after the federal budget.
Muzammil Aslam expressed confidence in the province's financial stability, stating that when he took charge, the province had money for only a few weeks of salaries, but prudent financial management has now made K-P financially strong. He also announced a Rs200 billion development package for Peshawar. Work on the Peshawar-Charsadda railway track project has begun to reduce traffic pressure on the route.
The advisor emphasized that the government is striving to present a surplus budget while protecting the people from any additional financial burden.
