QUETTA: The overdraft of the Balochistan government will be converted into a soft loan, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Dr Shamshad Akhtar said on Monday. Efforts will be made to grant maximum relaxation to the Balochistan government for the payment of its loans, she said at a meeting, held to discuss the strategy for converting the overdraft into a soft loan. Balochistan Chief Minister Nawab Muhammad Aslam Raisani presided over the meeting, while Balochistan senior minister Abdul Wasay, Finance Minister Asim Kurd Gailu, Finance Secretary Mehfooz Ali Khan and Additional Chief Secretary Ahmed Bakhsh Lehri also attended. The participants of the meeting reviewed the financial constraints, non-development expenditure, promotion and opportunities of investment and financial issues of Balochistan. The Balochistan government has obtained an overdraft of Rs 21 billion during the last three years. It has been paying around Rs 300 million a month in interest to the SBP, a senior official of the provincial Finance Department said. app
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