FAZAL SHER & TAHIR AMIN

ISLAMABAD: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has set 4.3 percent budget deficit target as prior action for the current fiscal year including an adjuster of 0.3 percent of GDP (up to Rs 100 billion) on security expenditure and resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

The IMF staff level report on seventh review under the Extended Arrangement and Modification of Performance stated that “due to extraordinary circumstances, the authorities will incur one-off spending of up to Rs 100 billion (programme adjustor) on security enhancements related to fighting terrorism and resettlement of IDPs.”

The Finance Minister during the budget week had stated that the current situation was very extraordinary and around Rs 45 billion would be required for security enhancement and around Rs 55 billion for resettlement of IDPs. The government spent Rs 45 billion in the last financial year on special development Programme for TDPs and security enhancement.

According to the FATA Disaster Management Authority’s data uploaded on its website over 150,000 have returned to their homes while the government is planning to send back 600,000 temporarily displaced persons of Waziristan Agency before August this year. Each family is being given Rs 25,000, and Rs10, 000 for transportation and six months ration.

Minister for States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON) Abdul Qadir Baloch has said the repatriation process of IDPs will be completed by September 2016.

The government launched military operation Zarb-e-Azb in June 2014 in NWA to eliminate terrorists’ sanctuaries.

According to data compiled by Business Recorder from various independent sources, the ongoing military operation Zarb-e-Azb has brought 55 percent decrease in the number of casualties and 18 percent in the number of terrorist’s attacks during the 12 months of the operation in comparison to the year before. As many as 503 civilians, including security forces personnel, were killed during the last 12 months (June 2014 to June 2015) in 96 terror attacks; whereas, 1,126 people including security forces personnel lost their lives in 117 terrorist attacks across the country during June 2013 to June 2014 before Pakistan army launched the comprehensive operation against the militants on June 15, 2014.

However further reinforcements in country’s internal defences are required with the objective of protecting areas from where the terrorists have been evicted, rehabilitating the displaced persons and allowing them to honourably restart their lives.