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June 2014

Poor performance of transport sector costing Pakistan 5% of GDP

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*Railway enduring worst crisis mainly due to locomotive shortages

The World Bank estimates that poor performance of the transport sector is costing Pakistan about five percent of its GDP. Furthermore thirty percent of agriculture output is currently wasted due to its inefficient farm to market channels, lack of cold storage facilities and an obsolete underpowered trucking fleet, says Pakistan Economic Survey 2013-14. According to the survey, Pakistan Railway is enduring the worst crisis mainly due to locomotive shortages. Passenger and freight services substantially declined during last five years. This is evident from above table that gross earning of Pakistan Railway has declined during last five years. Due to over aged infrastructure and rolling stock, increase in Read More »Poor performance of transport sector costing Pakistan 5% of GDP

Three UK varsities, 57 colleges banned from sponsoring international students

Three universities and 57 private colleges have been told they cannot sponsor any new international students in a major crackdown on suspect English language qualifications.

In a statement to the House of Commons on June 24, immigration minister James Brokenshire said he was taking the action in the light of “detailed and wide-ranging investigation into actions by organized criminals to falsify English language tests for student visa applicants”.

It follows a BBC Panorama exposed in February, which revealed systematic cheating in tests from an organization called the Educational Testing Service (ETS). More than 29,000 invalid results and 19,000 questionable results had been identified so far, though “it is likely that the true totals will be higher,” said Brokenshire, who condemned the organized criminality behind the fraud.Read More »Three UK varsities, 57 colleges banned from sponsoring international students

Rich growing richer at the cost of poor

Pakistan’s economy has not done badly in the last two decades and per capita income in the country rose from $612 in 2003 to $1,295 in 2013 despite deteriorated internal security and frequent natural disasters, according to the International Monetary Fund. But participants in a discussion on inequality, arranged by SDPI and Oxfam here on Wednesday, learnt that the doubling of national income benefited the poor of the country the least.

“In urban areas, the top 20 per cent of the population take 61 per cent of the monthly income in comparison to 3.45 per cent of the bottom 20 per cent,” informed Babar Jamal of the Sustainable Development Policy Institute.Read More »Rich growing richer at the cost of poor

Highlights of Punjab Budget 2014-15

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Broadening  the tax net instead of burdening the existing taxpayers and setting up of coal and solar power plants from own resources are the highlight of Punjab government’s over Rs1 trillion budget for the next fiscal year

Following in the footsteps of the federal government, the provincial administration would also propose a 10 per cent increase in the salaries and pensions of its serving and retired employees.Read More »Highlights of Punjab Budget 2014-15

Pakistan Budget 14-15: New tax rates on cars, vehicles

The government has slapped increased tax rates as well as advance tax on motor cars in the budget 2014-15.

Up to 850 cc, the proposed advance tax stands at Rs 10000 for both return filers and non-filers. For 851 cc to 1000 cc, the proposed tax rate is Rs 20000 for filers and Rs 25,000 for non-filers.

For 1001cc to 1300cc, the government has proposed tax rate of Rs30,000 on filers and Rs40,000 for non-filers. For 1301 cc to 1600 cc, the proposed tax rate is Rs 50000 for filers and Rs 100,000 for non-filers.Read More »Pakistan Budget 14-15: New tax rates on cars, vehicles

Pakistan Economic Survey 2013-14

Growth rate less than the targeted 4.4% but highest in six years at 4.14%

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said on Monday that the country could provisionally achieve 4.1 percent growth target for the outgoing year, and termed the 4.4 percent GDP growth rate target for fiscal year 2013-14 as over-stretched.

Launching the Economic Survey for the year 2013-14 at a press conference at the premises of the Finance Ministry, the federal minister said the GDP growth rate was less than the targeted 4.4%, but it was for the first time in six years that the country had entered the territory of four percent growth in the fiscal year 2013-14. And, the GDP growth rate would be increased by one percent during the next three years, rising to 7% in 2017. Similarly, the industrial growth has been recorded at 5.84% as against 1.37% last year, he added.Read More »Pakistan Economic Survey 2013-14