BUDGET 2026-27: Defence gets Rs3tr amid security concerns

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, while tabling the budget in the National Assembly, said Pakistan’s armed forces had delivered a decisive response to India’s aggression, forcing the adversary to retreat and demonstrating the country’s military preparedness and professional competence. The finance minister attributed the country’s enhanced global stature to the successes of the military. The proposed allocation, unveiled in the federal budget, comes a year after the government approved an over 20pc increase in military spending. The hike reflects the continuing priority being accorded to defence and security in an increasingly challenging regional environment. At Rs3tr, the defence allocation would account for about 2.08pc of the country’s projected gross domestic product of Rs143.6tr and nearly 16pc of the total federal outlay of Rs18.77tr, taking military spending back above the 2pc-of-GDP mark after remaining slightly below that level for several years. Budget documents show that the outgoing year’s original defence allocation of Rs2.55tr was later revised upward to Rs2.58tr, continuing the longstanding pattern of actual military expenditure exceeding initial budget estimates. The latest increase, though lower than last year’s roughly 20pc rise, remains significantly above the average annual growth in def