The cash-strapped Balochistan government on Saturday announced a budget of Rs71.19 billion for financial year 2008-09 which showed a deficit of Rs8.80 billion. "Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has promised to provide Rs3 billion special grant from his discretionary fund,' Balochistan Finance Minister Mir Asim Kurd informed the provincial assembly in his budget speech. With this grant, the budget deficit would come down to Rs5.80 billion, which would be met by enhancing province's own resources, he added. Like the outgoing fiscal year, the development outlay for 2008-09 is largely unfunded and it depends entirely on special grants from the Centre. The last year's development budget of over Rs13 billion showed a resource gap of over Rs10 billion. The finance minister announced that the Rs2 billion subsidy on tubewells would continue. The subsidy was introduced last year to cope with the damage of drought in the province. He said that mega projects worth Rs51.36 billion being carried out by the federal government in the province would bring a green revolution. The projects include Mirani and Subakzai dams, Kacchi canal, extension of Pat Feeder, Kirthar canal, recharge of ground water, Bolan dam at Kacchi, reconstruction of Shadi Kaur dam, Nawa Batozai storage dam in Qila Saifullah and rehabilitation of Nari canal. Mr Kurd said that four of the five dams the federal government planned to construct were in Balochistan. He said the provincial government was planning to allot land to landless farmers. He announced a number of austerity measures and imposed a ban on purchase of new cars, machinery and other goods for official purposes. Petrol consumption will be kept at the minimum possible level. Legislation for the Balochistan Public Procurement Regulatory Authority and institution of a provincial employees pension fund and an investment fund under the General Provident Fund Act are some of the proposals. A financial manual is being compiled to ensure full compliance with rules and regulation of the government. The minister announced a 20 per cent raise in pension and salary of the government employees, besides an increase in medical and conveyance allowances. The Rs71.19 billion budget has three distinct segments -- Rs47.52 billion current revenue expenditure, Rs7.92 billion capital expenditure and Rs15.74 billion development outlay. The revenue budget shows a surplus amount of Rs4 billion. The capital budget shows a deficit of Rs1.69 billion which reduces revenue surplus to Rs2.30 billion. With the expected foreign assistance of Rs4.62 billion and Japan's cash assistance of Rs11.50 million, the revenue surplus of Rs2.30 billion will contribute Rs6.93 billion to financing the Rs15.74 billion Annual Development Programme. It leaves a big gap of Rs8.80 billion, which will be partly met from the Rs3 billion special grant and Rs3 billion Uch gas royalty for which the prime minister has constituted a committee. Mr Kurd informed the assembly that the province was expected to get Rs48.05 billion from the federal government during 2008-09. The provincial own revenue generation is estimated at Rs3.47 billion, of which Rs2.50 billion will be non-tax income and only Rs972.16 million is expected to be collected as taxes. As against the current revenue expenditure of Rs47.52 billion, total revenue receipts are Rs51.52 billion, showing a surplus of Rs4 billion. The capital expenditure of Rs7.92 billion provides Rs2.97 billion performance grant to district governments, Rs1.95 billion debt-servicing to the State Bank, Rs1.17 billion debt-servicing to the federal government, Rs1.40 billion payment against cash development loans and a few small payments against loans. Total capital receipts amount to Rs6.22 billion, of which Rs4.55 billion comes under the BDSSP in foreign exchange. A deficit of Rs1.69 billion on capital budget has brought down the surplus to Rs2.30 billion from Rs4 billion. During the outgoing fiscal year 2007-08, the revenue income outgrew budgetary projections. As against the original projection of Rs43.82 billion revenue income, the revised estimate of revenue amounted to Rs46.38 billion. The provincial revenue also outgrew and the revised estimate of Rs3.22 billion, against the original projection of Rs2.96 billion. The revenue expenditure budget in 2007-08 came down to Rs39.95 billion from the original projection of Rs41.95 billion. The development outlay was Rs12.58 billion, against original projection of Rs13.47 billion. The budget for 2007-08 showed a deficit of over Rs10 billion. It had been adjusted through financial engineering by improving Rs2.56 billion revenue income and bringing down the current expenditure to Rs5.54 billion and the development expenditure to Rs850 million.