News
PM forms committee to ensure adequate sugar supply
ISLAMABAD, Feb 11 : Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has constituted a committee headed by Advisor on Finance Dr. Salman Shah to prepare a short term and long term policy to ensure adequate supply of sugar at affordable price. The committee will also prepare a policy to ensure smooth supply of essential items in the market.
A decision to this effect has been taken at a meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee in Islamabad which reviewed the prices of essential commodities in the country particularly the sugar prices. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz presided over the meeting.
Addressing the meeting, Shaukat Aziz said the government was constantly watching the price situation and taking all possible measures to ensure adequate supply of sugar at affordable price.
Briefing newsmen about the decisions of the ECC, the Economic Advisor Dr. Ashfaq Hassan Khan said the Prime Minister directed the Utility Store Corporation to supply sugar through mobile vans and set up sale points in al weekly bazars in cities and towns. It has been decided that Utility Stores Corporation will increase its sale points from the existing 450 to one thousand to provide sugar to the people at controlled rates.
He said the meeting noted that the unregistered buying of sugarcane is continuing in the provinces.
The Industries Division briefed the meeting about the steps taken by the government to ensure the supply of sugar in the market and through Utilities Stores.
Dr. Ashfaq Hasan Khan said a stock of 3.065 tons of wheat is available and the new season is coming. He said efforts are being made to disburse this stock and stabilize the prices of the atta..
The ECC approved the LPG policy to improve and streamline the supply of LPG in the market. The new policy will not only encourage investment by local and foreign investors but would also make business transparent and pro-consumers. OGRA has been directed to be proactive and ensure the interest of consumers.
The Economic Advisor said the performance of Central Board of Revenue has also been reviewed. The meeting was told that CBR has collected 368.4 billion rupees in the first seven months of the current financial year as against 303.7 billion rupees in the same period last year registering an increase of 21.3 percent. The target of seventh months was 358.6 billion rupees and tax collection is ten billion rupees more than the target.
He said Pakistan is making efforts to qualify for the IMF programme 'Special Data Dissemination System'. Pakistan is already member of General Data Dissemination System. To qualify for the SDDS Pakistan should have quarterly employment and unemployment figures.
He said according to the Labour Force Survey of first quarter of 2006, 5.54 million new jobs have been created in about two years.
The ECC has also approved Wind power generation. Under the policy WAPDA and KESC will purchase power generated through alternate sources. He said the first fifty MW project will start functioning by the end June this year.
Dr. Ashfaq Hasan Khan told newsmen that the Asian Development Bank has provided assistance of one billion dollars for earthquake affected areas. Out of this 300 million dollars will be disburse this year. It included 2.20 million dollars loan which will be repaid in forty years with ten years grace period on one percent interest rate. The rest eighty million dollars is grant. The ECC decided to give the whole amount of 300 million dollars to the AJK and NWFP governments as grant for spending in the affected areas.
The ECC has constituted an IT Council headed by the Prime Minister. Its aims is to promote IT sector and software development.