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Fog: Flights affected, motorways closed, Lahore first in air pollution

Lahore remained the most polluted city with AQI 1,045

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Lahore: Many districts of Punjab, Sindh, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have come under heavy fog and smog.

Due to the bad air quality, Lahore remained the most polluted city in the world and the country in the early morning, where the Air Quality Index (AQI) was at 1,045, but the number of particulate meters was recorded at 910 in Lahore at 8:00am.

Meanwhile, Multan ranked second in air pollution where 806 particulate meters were recorded.

On the other hand, due to heavy fog and smog, Motorway M4 from Pindi Bhattian to Abdul Hakim, and from Abdul Hakim to Sher Shah is also closed. Motorway M5 Sher Shah to Sukkur and Sialkot Motorways are also closed to traffic.

Apart from this, more than 10 flights were also affected due to heavy fog and passengers had to face problems.

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Business

SBP releases govt debt data

This year, local debt of govt decreased by Rs803 billion to Rs47,536 billion

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Karachi: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) released government debt figures.

State Bank said that the government reduced its debt by Rs792 billion in September which was Rs69,570 billion till September 2024.

This year, the local debt of the government decreased by Rs803 billion to Rs47,536 billion.

The government debt to GDP ratio stood at 65.70 percent in September, while the ratio of government to GDP is at the lowest since June 2018.

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Business

IMF demands spending cuts or more taxes of $189bn

Tax collection through TDS is only Rs1.7 million

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Islamabad: Pakistan on Monday informed the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that during the first quarter of the current financial year, the tax machinery collected Rs11 billion from retailers, wholesalers, and distributors as high-level talks headed by the finance minister began.

However, expectations regarding the Tajir Dost Scheme (TDS) have not been met and the tax collection through this particular scheme is only Rs1.7 million as per the latest available data against the target set for the first quarter was Rs10 billion.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb started the first phase of talks with the IMF delegation on Monday evening.

Secretary Finance Imdadullah Bosal and Chairman Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) Rashid Mahmood Langryal started the first session with the IMF delegation which will be staying in Islamabad from November 11 to 15, 2024.

It is to see how the IMF responds but it seems that it will be difficult for the government to satisfy the IMF.

The IMF is suggesting two options: either present a mini-budget to cover the Rs189 billion revenue shortfall the FBR incurred in the first four months or a workable plan to reduce unrestricted costs should be developed.

A top official said TDS was meant to bring only retailers and wholesalers into the tax net but its target has been achieved as the FBR has collected an additional Rs11 billion from them through general taxation in the first quarter.

Under Sections 236G and 236H of the Income Tax Act, the FBR increased the tax rate by nearly 10 times on sales of products to non-filers, due to which retailers and wholesalers preferred to join the tax net under strict measures and fear. And deposit Rs11 billion as additional tax by September 30, 2024.

The number of return filers has also increased significantly, which has accelerated the process of documenting the economy in the country.

The IMF was briefed by top officials of the Power Division and the possibility of raising fixed rates for on-grid with reduced solar power systems. During the ongoing negotiations with the IMF, it may come up with stronger proposals.

Pakistan and the IMF began talks on Monday as a delegation of the fund's staff came to negotiate a middle-of-the-road proposal to avoid deviations from the fiscal and external frameworks set for the fiscal year.

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