Centre forms eight NFC committees amid provincial tensions

ISLAMABAD: The Centre has notified eight committees of the National Finance Commission (NFC), including one on debt utilisation and the transfer of expenditures to provinces, following the attorney general's support for the federal government against Sindh's objections.

The development came as Pakistan's top fiscal expert, Dr Hafiz Pasha, noted that despite the constitutional requirement to allocate 57.5% of the divisible pool to provinces, they received only 45.8% in the last fiscal year after accounting for petroleum levies and cash surpluses. Dr Pasha made these remarks at a seminar on the NFC organised by the Social Policy and Development Centre (SPDC).

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, who had initially confirmed attendance, did not appear at the seminar; instead, he met SPDC representatives at his office. SPDC Managing Director Asif Iqbal said the finance minister had first confirmed his participation but expressed regret late the previous night.