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01-21-2020, 02:12 PM
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Senators voice concern over price hike
Leader of the Opposition in the Senate Raja Zafarul Haq said the wheat shortage was not an issue of one party, rather it had put immense pressure on every citizen of the country. The people were feeling the pressure of inflation. Senator Javed Abbasi said Pakistan was self-sufficient in wheat but it was a matter of grave concern that the people were facing problems due to the shortage of the commodity. He said the Sindh and Balochistan governments were claiming that they had written to the federal government that they were running out of wheat stocks. Senator Javed said in the past a health minister had resigned over increase in medicine prices, which, however, was not reversed. Gas was not available in many parts of the country, while its price had been hiked, he added. He urged the government to devise policies for generating employments, reducing prices and attracting investment. Senator Sirajul Haq said Pakistan was a leading producer of wheat, sugarcane, and fruits and vegetables but people were suffering from their shortages. The price of roti (bread) had increased and those of the medicines also, he added. Senator Mohsin Aziz said it was a fact that there was shortage of flour and the government had categorically stated that the crisis would end in thenext few days.He said one reason for the flour crisis was the wrong data provided by the provincial governments and disruption of wheat supply due to the strike of transporters. The flour crisis had hit the country many times in the past as well, he said, adding there was need to undertake more research in the agriculture sector. Senator Mushtaq Ahmed said Pakistan was the food basket and according to experts, if available resources were utilised properly, it could even meet the food needs of a continent like Africa. The government should take severe action against those responsible for the present flour crisis, he demanded. Senator Abdul Qayyum said when the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government came into power, it had faced the challenges of terrorism, energy crisis and economic revival, which it had overcome. Now the militancy was again raising its head, with crisis in the energy sector and growing inflation, he added. He asked the government to plan ahead about the future food requirements of the country by keeping in view the population, area under cultivation and yield.Those elements should also be held accountable, who were involved in profiteering and hoarding, he added. Senator Pervaiz Rashid said the monthly wheat requirement of the country was 200,000 metric tons. Last year the country produced 24 million tonnes, he said adding export and smuggling of wheat was done. The wheat was exported at the rate of Rs 29 per kilogram, while now it was being sold for Rs 70 per kg in the country, he claimed. He said the federal government was complaining that it was given wrong information by the provinces. The prices of sugar had also gone up, he added.Senator Muzaffar Shah, who is the chairman of the Senate’s Standing Committee on Food Security and Research, said the reasons for the wheat crisis should be determined through an investigation by the committee. First the wheat was exported and now the people were facing its shortage. He said farmers were complaining that prices of inputs like seeds, fertilisers and electricity tariff had gone up. The minimum support price for farmers should be determined before the cultivation season of the crops like sugarcane, wheat and cotton, he stressed. Senator Usman Kakar claimed inflation had risen to 13 to 15 per cent as prices of some items had increased many folds. Different mafias were working against the interests of the people.Leader of the House Shibli Faraz said Minister for Food Security Khusro Bakhtiar would brief the House on Tuesday (today) about the situation of wheat supply. Meanwhile, the Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet (ECC) on Monday decided to allow import of 300,000 tonnes of wheat to decrease its price and meet the domestic requirement. The ECC meeting chaired by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, also withdrew regulatory duty allowing the private sector to import the commodity to the extent of the approved quantity. The ECC decided that the wheat to be imported under its decision would be allowed in the country until March 31, 2020 to ensure that the local wheat to be available from the start of April was picked up at the right price from the market. It also issued instructions for the immediate release of stocks held by the PASSCO (Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Services Corporation) and the provincial departments. Besides the import of wheat, the ECC approved a proposal by the Ministry of Industries and Production to reduce the Gas Infrastructure Development Cess (GIDC) on gas consumed by fertiliser manufacturers from Rs 405 to Rs 5 per bag so that this benefit could be passed on to farmers.It also allowed the increase of Rs 200 billion on the request of Ministry of Energy (Power Division) from Islamic banks as fresh facility through the Power Holding Limited by way of issuance of Pakistan Energy Sukuk-II against assets of the DISCOs (distribution companies) / GENCOs (generation companies) as collateral through open competitive bidding to procure financing in a fair and transparent manner. The amount will be utilised for the purpose of funding the repayment liabilities of DISCOs. The committee approved the proposed mechanism by the Ministry of Finance for the grant of sovereign guarantees. أكثر... 
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