In our fiscal year budgets it is become a habit now, that every and each government hide himself behind 10 to 15 percent raise in the salaries of its employees to portray that the government is very serious about curbing the poverty. Another way, the critics also thinks that actually the elite class, (those are the elected members of parliament and class one officers) in every two year had have raise their salaries and privileges by minimum of 15 percent that is an extra burden on the war and bad economic conditions effected citizens of the country.
Therefore to counter that criticism every administration gives that lollypop to the nation that government is very keen about the poverty and low income of the a lay man, but infect these public servants are like salt in the flour, of the 25 million papulation of the low GDP, country. So no government may say that the above measures would reduce the poverty because truly it is an extra burden own the masses, because those poverty effected citizens are paying extra taxes for increase in the government employees’ salaries.
It should be remember that in 2025-26 budget the federal government did not raise the minimum limit of private sector employees and labor, that is not more than RS 3700 0 per month. Although we know that the above raise in salaries will influence batter on the life of those servants and it is a much needed relief for the tax burdened and inflation-stricken government employees, the government jacked up their salaries by 10% along with a 4% cut in income tax rate across various slabs in the federal budget unveiled on Tuesday.
According to the reports government has taken a significant step to provide substantial relief to lower and middle income sectors, proposing up to a four per cent reduction in income tax across various slabs. In addition, the government also proposed a 1% decrease in surcharge on earning of over Rs10 million per annum.
Presenting the federal budget for fiscal year 2025-26, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb stated that the prime minister had consistently endeavored to lower taxes on salaried individuals.
“Keeping this objective in mind, we have proposed a decrease in income tax across all slabs,” he said.
“This measure will not only ease the existing tax structure but also strike a crucial balance between inflationary pressures and individuals’ take-home pay by alleviating the tax burden,” the minister announced, while delivering the budget speech in the National Assembly.
According to the budgetary documents, individuals earning between Rs600, 000 and Rs1.2 million per annum are set to receive significant tax relief, as the government lowers the tax rate from 5% to 1%.
For those earning up to Rs100, 000 per month, the total tax amount comes down from Rs30, 000 to Rs6, 000.
Similarly, individuals in the next slab who earn up to Rs2.2 million per annum will see a 4% decline from 15 to 11% in income tax rate on their salaries. Individuals earning up to Rs3.2 million will benefit from a 2% cut from 25 to 23% in the next fiscal year.
Meanwhile, in a move to mitigate the brain drain phenomenon, which sees professional human resources facing the highest tax burden in the region, the government has proposed a 1% decrease in the surcharge applied to individuals earning more than Rs10 million per annum.
The salaried class paid a staggering Rs331 billion in income tax in the eight months of the current fiscal, July, February period, which is 1,350% more than the taxes paid by retailers. The
Amount was also Rs120 billion, or 56% higher than Rs211 billion collected during the same period of the last fiscal year.
Although these are better measures but it is the need of time that, the government should raise the salaries of labor and private sector.
