MUZAFFARABAD: A budget with an outlay of Rs 13.2 billion for the next fiscal year was presented in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly here on Saturday.

Speaker AJK Legislative Assembly Sardar Siab Khalid presided over the budget session.

The budget provides development outlay to the tune of Rs 3.83 billion, which shows an increase of 16 per cent as compared to the outgoing financial year developmental allocations will be provided by the federal government.

The non-developmental expenditure has been estimated to over Rs 9.37 billion against the revenue receipts of over Rs 7.8 billion. The deficit of over Rs 2.28 billion between the revenue receipts and non-developmental expenditure will also be met by the federal government.

The finance minister said Rs 300 million were earmarked for the construction of 370 km of roads near the Line of Control areas, while compensation allowance for the heirs of martyrs of Indian firing has been increased from Rs 20,000 to Rs 25,000.

He highly appreciated the generous financial assistance of the federal government departments and corporations for the uplift of various sectors of the AJK.

Qadir informed that federal government would spend Rs 2 billion on different projects it was directly undertaking. He also informed that the 15 per cent increase in salaries and pensions announced by the federal finance minister would also be implemented in the AJK.

Emphasis has been laid on public importance projects relating to communication sector with an allocation of Rs 1.11 billion, he said adding that inter-district roads and major bridges would be built on priority basis whereas major roads linking the AJK with Pakistani cities would be dualised.

Rs 654 million have been allocated for rural development sector, covering water supply schemes, link roads, primary schools and dispensary buildings, he said.

The amount given to the MLAs for uplift activities in their respective areas will be increased to Rs 3 million from Rs 2 million, he said.

Rs 539 million have been allocated for electricity, hydel power and water sector, he said and informed that the ongoing schemes would be completed on priority basis the laying of 924 km HT and LT electricity lines and installation of 580 new transformers. This would make available over 17,000 new power connections.

The 132 and 120 megawatt Gulpur and Rajdhani hydel projects have been completed under the ongoing hydel power policy and the government is negotiating with the World Bank and the IFC to get soft term loans to open investment in hydel power generation.

The minister said Rs 375 million have been earmarked for education sector.

Earlier, a meeting of the AJK cabinet, with PM Sardar Sikandar Hayat Khan in the chair, approved the budget.

Khizar Hayat Abbasi adds: Rowdy scenes climaxing in snatching of written speech and mike from the finance minister by a woman lawmaker marked the presentation of Budget 2003-04 in the Azad Kashmir Legislative Assembly here on Saturday.

The session was presided over by Speaker Sardar Siab Khalid. As recitation from the Holy Qur'aan ended, the opposition leader and former AJK premier Barrister Sultan Mehmood rose to his feet and asked the speaker to take up Prime Minister Sikandar Hayat's statement on Kashmir's division under Chenab Formula for debate.

The speaker rejected opposition's demand saying the rules of procedures did not allow any other issue to be debated when the House meets for budget session. He then asked Finance Minister Shah Ghulam Qadir to deliver his budget speech.

Infuriated by the speaker's snub, the irate opposition resorted to taunts, catcalls and desk pounding that drowned a considerable part of the budget speech. Yells of "No Sikandar No", "Go Sikandar Go", echoed in the Legislative Assembly coupled with deafening desk thumping and bids to drub the finance minister, the speaker and the prime minister by the opposition lawmakers.

A woman opposition MP, Shahzada Kosar Gillani, created stir in the House by snatching written budget speech along with mike from the finance minister, a minute after he started his budget speech and tossed it in the air after tearing the document into pieces. Exchange of hot words between the two sides lead to physical brawl between them despite repeated requests from the chair for maintaining the order.

At one stage, the speaker called the sergeant-at-arms and ordered him to take the opposition legislators out of the assembly. When the official moved towards the opposition members, he was thrashed by the fuming opposition lawmakers and forced to leave the House.

The treasury members encircled the finance minister to shield him against any physical attack from the opposition members and asked him to continue his budget speech. The opposition members continued shouting slogans against the Sikandar government for about 45 minutes till the speaker adjourned the session till June 24 after completion of the budget speech. During the whole episode, the government side observed restraint and did not respond in a tit-for-tat manner to avoid further worsening of the situation. Five opposition members led by former senior minister in Sultan Mehmood's cabinet showed least interest in the protest.