| ISLAMABAD:
In an alarming development, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government added Rs18.5 trillion to the public debt in just 15 months, which was more than the debt accumulated by its arch-rival Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf in its three-and-a-half-year tenure, reveals a central bank statement.
Gross public debt jumped from Rs44.4 trillion in March 2022 to Rs62.9 trillion by the end of fiscal year 2022-23, according to the monthly debt bulletin of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). The debt in a short period of mere 15 months increased at a pace of 41.7% amid absence of any credible strategy to contain it. As a result, the federal government debt, which is the direct responsibility of the finance ministry, jumped to Rs60.8 trillion by the end of June 2023. There was an addition of Rs18 trillion in one year and three months’ rule of the PDM government, according to the debt bulletin released on Wednesday.
The public debt has been multiplying at an unsustainable pace due to uncontrolled expenditures, below potential revenue collection from sectors like real estate, services and agriculture and the sinking rupee against the dollar.
The government of former prime minister Imran Khan had added Rs18.1 trillion to the public debt during its 44-month rule, a threshold that the administration of PM Shehbaz Sharif exceeded in just 15 months. Debt figure for July has not yet been compiled by the central bank.
The pace at which the public debt is mushrooming can be gauged from the fact that the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) added Rs18 trillion to the debt stock from 2008 to 2018.
Another Rs18 trillion was added from August 2018 to March 2022 by Imran Khan’s government. And now the PDM government added Rs18.5 trillion in just 15 months.
From September 1, 2018 to the end of March 2022, the PTI government on average added Rs14.5 billion per day to the public debt, which was more than double the PML-N period’s average increase of Rs5.6 billion a day.
Now, the PDM government added on average Rs41 billion per day to the debt stock. When the PTI government’s term ended, the total public debt stood at Rs44.4 trillion, which was equal to 83.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) before the rebasing of economy. After rebasing, the public debt decreased by 15% of GDP but there was no reduction in absolute terms.
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