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  "path": "/latest/attaullah-tarar-maintains-budget-2026-27-as-relief-focused-and-different-from-past-years/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-06-17T06:52:12.000Z",
  "site": "https://humenglish.com",
  "tags": [
    "Latest",
    "Pakistan",
    "Attaullah Tarar maintains Budget 2026-27 as ‘relief-focused’ and different from past years",
    "HUM News English"
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  "textContent": "Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Wednesday outlined key points of the federal budget for FY 2026–27 during an online briefing, insisting that budget was “different from previous budgets” and insisted that it has been designed as a relief-oriented package\n\nBoth Tarar and Minister of State for Finance, Bilal Azhar Kayani responded to questions and defended the government’s economic strategy during the briefing.\n\n“By the grace of God, we have prepared a budget based on relief,” Tarar said, adding that even critics were acknowledging some of its positive aspects. However, he argued that some opposition voices “criticise for the sake of criticism” and are habitually opposed to government measures.\n\n### Reforms in FBR, enforcement gains, and digitalisation\n\nTarar said the government created fiscal space through deep structural reforms, particularly in the Federal Board of Revenue. “We eliminated the culture of recommendations in the FBR and introduced a merit-based system,” he said.\n\nHe highlighted the rollout of a faceless appraisal system at ports, stating that customs procedures are now fully digital and transparent. “What used to take weeks is now completed in days,” he said.\n\nHe added that major industries including sugar, tobacco, cement and beverages were brought under stricter monitoring through digital systems like barcode tracking and cameras. These measures, he said, generated additional revenue of around Rs60 billion from the sugar sector and helped recover nearly Rs800 billion through enforcement.\n\n### Tax relief, exports, and growth incentives\n\nThe minister said salaried individuals had been given major relief, including exemption for incomes up to Rs50,000 and a reduced 1 percent tax rate for incomes up to Rs100,000. “Reducing the burden on the salaried class was a key priority,” he said.\n\nHe added that exporters were also supported through removal of advance tax and super tax, while export refinancing rates were reduced to 4 percent to boost competitiveness.\n\nTarar said housing incentives, youth loan schemes, IT facilitation, and agriculture machinery duty exemptions were part of efforts to stimulate economic activity. He also noted that agricultural machinery imports had been made duty-free to modernise the sector.\n\nKayani also referred to the abolition of tax on sanitary products, as to how the government is also trying to create ease for women.\n\n### Youth, IT, and broader economic direction\n\nHe said the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme would benefit around 550,000 young people through loans and training initiatives. He added that IT and freelance sectors were protected from additional taxation, calling them “government priorities.”\n\nTarar said agriculture innovation, sports development programmes, and education initiatives such as Danish Schools and universities were being expanded to improve long-term human capital.\n\n### PTI-era economic instability and recovery claims\n\nReferring to the tenure of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), Tarar said Pakistan had been facing severe economic instability under the PTI era, claiming that “people used to say the country would default today or tomorrow.” He said foreign exchange reserves were at critically low levels, imports were difficult to finance, and the rupee had been highly unstable. “At that time, inflation had reached 38 percent and was projected to go even higher,” he said, adding that interest rates had climbed above 22 percent and remittances had also declined significantly.\n\nHe alleged that during that period even some officials “took leave because they did not want default to happen on their watch.”\n\nHe said the PML-N leadership stepped in to stabilise the situation. “Under the vision of Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif moved forward with economic management,” he said, crediting IMF negotiations for helping prevent default.\n\nThe post Attaullah Tarar maintains Budget 2026-27 as ‘relief-focused’ and different from past years appeared first on HUM News English.",
  "title": "Attaullah Tarar maintains Budget 2026-27 as ‘relief-focused’ and different from past years"
}