The interim government has asked ministries to halt fund allocations for infrastructure development, car purchase, land acquisition and foreign tours by public servants as part of revising down the current national budget.
To this end, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has asked not to demand higher fund allocations against any projects or schemes under the current operating and development budgets, officials said on Thursday.
On Thursday, it issued a guideline to all the ministries and divisions for estimating their revised budget allocations for the remaining period of the current fiscal year (FY), 2024-25.
The ministry has also ordered the public agencies to stop buying cars and any other motorised vehicles, spending on study tours and building residences, offices or any other establishments during the period, according to an official.
The ministries have been asked to submit their revised operational and development budget allocations within November 28.
The ousted Sheikh Hasina government formulated a Tk 7.97 trillion worth of the national budget for FY2025.
Of the allocations, Tk 2.81 trillion was allocated for development budget, including a Tk 2.65-trillion ADP and Tk 5.067 trillion for operating expenses.
"We've asked the ministries and divisions to give us their revised allocations keeping in mind some factors, including revenue income and their spending capacity," said a senior MoF official.
"As the country has been struggling with economic downturn over the last couple of years," he said, "we've taken a very cautious approach to revising the national budget of this fiscal."
The ministries are asked not to demand higher funds than allocated for any project or for any component of the budget for development and operating expenditure targets, according to the official.
The MoF guideline for revising the national budget says the release of funds for purchasing cars and motorised vehicles will remain halted for the time being.
Land acquisition will now be stopped totally. However, the authorities will need MoF's permission to get fund release with an eye to acquiring land.
Excepting education, health and agriculture ministries, expenditure on building office or residential buildings and other establishments will also be suspended.
"If any building work under the current development budget is completed 70 per cent or above, the funds could be released upon MoF's approval."
Under the operating and development budget, expenditure on civil servants' participation in foreign tours, seminars and workshops will be stopped, reads the MoF guideline.
The ministry has also asked the Planning Commission and other ministries not to release money from the "special funds for development" and "bloated allocations" in the budget without prior approval.
It has also ordered the ministries concerned not to transfer or reappropriate funds from one component to another or from the development budget to the operating one.
They are also asked to spend a maximum of 80 per cent of their allocations for the electricity, fuel oil, lubricant, energy and gas sector in the revised budget.
The MoF has suggested that the ministries keep in mind their spending capacity in the first half of the previous two fiscal years-FY2023 and FY2024-and expenditure trend of the first four to five months of FY2025 when going for revising their current budget allocations.
Meanwhile, the Yunus-led government has already tightened its belt as it has mostly stopped giving a seal of approval to any fresh development scheme.
Meanwhile, the Hasina government in FY2024 revised down the Tk 7.61-trillion budget to Tk 7.14 trillion. On the other hand, it cut the budget to Tk 5.73 trillion in FY2023.
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