KP Clears Debt, Boosts Cash. CM Gandapur Demands Federal Dues

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur recently shared that his government hasn’t borrowed a single penny in the last year and even paid back Rs50 billion of old debt. Speaking at a press conference on Sunday, he said that when he took over, there was barely enough cash in the province’s kitty to cover salaries for two weeks. But by tightening up spending and finding new ways to bring in money, KP now has an extra Rs169 billion in its budget.

Without slapping new taxes on folks, the province boosted its income by Rs55 billion, cleared Rs72 billion in overdue bills, and set aside Rs30 billion for projects to improve things around KP. They also started a special fund with Rs30 billion to manage debt, planning to bump it up to Rs50 billion by the end of the year.

Gandapur talked up KP’s water power, saying they’re working on making more electricity from it. By 2028, they want to produce a ton of power for the province. There’s an Rs18 billion project in the works to build a power line that’ll give cheap electricity to factories, which should help grow businesses and create jobs.

He also announced Rs20 billion in aid for struggling families during Ramadan. Plus, they’ve doubled money for scholarships and stipends, bumped Zakat payments from Rs12,000 to Rs25,000, and jacked up dowry help from Rs25,000 to Rs200,000.

To keep things running smoothly, they’ve set up special funds for universities and water companies so they won’t need handouts forever. Gandapur’s sure these places can stand on their own by year’s end.

On the flip side, he’s mad that the federal government hasn’t paid KP its fair share from the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award since the tribal areas joined in 2018. He’s threatening big protests with everyone—politicians, regular people, and government workers—if they don’t cough up the cash soon.

He says the feds owe KP over Rs2 trillion for hydropower profits, plus more for tribal area projects and security costs. If they got that money, Gandapur reckons they could beef up the police and fix problems in the tribal zones. He warned that holding back the funds is making people lose faith, which could hurt efforts to fight terrorism.