LAHORE - The Punjab government is planning to convene Punjab Assembly session in few days to make legislation, allowing the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to collect Value Added Tax (VAT) on its behalf. The need for such a legislation by the provincial assemblies arose after the federal government replaced General Sales Tax (GST) with VAT with a view to broadening the tax net. The FBR will collect VAT on behalf of the provinces that would later be distributed among them in accordance with the newly singed NFC award, except one per cent of the total collection to be retained by the federal government as collection charges. The provincial governments lack tax collection machinery so the task is being assigned to FBR which is already collecting revenue in respect of GST. Sources in Punjab Assembly informed the assembly secretariat had been asked to make necessary preparations for holding the session, but no date had yet been finalised by the government in this regard. Speaker Punjab Assembly Rana Muhammad Iqbal had a meeting with Secretary Assembly Maqsood Malik in his assembly chambers on Wednesday to review arrangements for holding the assembly session. It has been further learnt that the Punjab governor, who has the constitutional authority to convene the session, has not yet received the relevant summary from the chief ministers secretariat. The provincial assemblies of Sindh, Balochistan and NWFP are also meeting in few days to fulfill the legal requirement.