Pakistan, June 2 -- The federal government has decided to focus only on high-priority development projects in the upcoming fiscal year due to limited funds. Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal said on Monday that the total Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) now stands at Rs880 billion, excluding Rs120bn for the N-25 expressway upgrade in Balochistan. The rest of the development budget will be spent carefully, aiming for maximum impact.

Iqbal explained that rising debt repayments and IMF conditions have reduced available resources. Inflation and high-interest rates have forced the government to adopt strict spending controls. More than half of federal spending now goes toward paying old loans. He blamed the previous government (2018-202...