Ehsaas Programme allocation placed under grants, transfers

Rupees 193 billion earmarked for Ehsaas Programme has been placed under grants and transfers, an item under current expenditure, instead of the past practice of placing it under other development expenditure outside PSDP for next fiscal year. Rupees 193 billion has been placed under the following sub-heads - Rs 180 billion under Benazir Income Support Programme, Rs 2.1 billion under Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF), Rs 5.6 billon grants to Bait-ul-Maal; and the remaining
Rs 5.3 billion under other grants which has a total budget of Rs 84 billion. The budget documents for 2019-20 do not indicate the revised estimates for the current year or disbursements under the poverty alleviation fund. The placement of Ehsaas Programme under grants and transfers accounts for 10 percent of total current expenditure (against last year''s allocation accounting for 8 percent of total current expenditure) which strengthens the government''s argument that current expenditure eats up the bulk of the federal revenue.
In addition placing Ehsaas Programme under grants and transfers increases its allocation by 73 percent for next fiscal year - to Rs 831 billion compared to Rs 478 billion in the revised estimates for the outgoing fiscal year. On March 28, Prime Minister Imran Khan launched poverty alleviation programme Ehsaas and stated that the programme aimed at helping vulnerable segments of society, including orphans, widows, homeless, disabled, undernourished, jobless. Ministry of Social Protection and Poverty Alleviation was established and it was decided to place BISP, PBM, Zakat, PPAF and all other social programmes under it and develop a one-window operation for social protection of the poor.