The government is considering import of 20,000 tractors in 'Complete Completely Built' (CBU) condition to bridge the gap between demand and production, keeping in view the scandalous import of same number of tractors during the tenure of Benazir Bhutto, sources in the Ministry of Industries told Business Recorder. The proposal, prepared by the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock (Minfal), came under discussion in the meeting of Cabinet Committee on Agriculture (CCA) wherein it was observed that level of duty/taxes had not been checked before submission of the proposal.
Minfal proposal said that there was shortage of tractors in the country causing delay in delivery to the farmers, and if the government allowed one-time import of 20,000 tractors at zero tariff, as recommended by the National Assembly Standing Committee on Food, Agriculture and Livestock, this shortage could be overcome.
Though Minfal said that a committee, headed by Minfal Secretary, would facilitate the process of import and delivery of tractors within the given timeframe, the CCA did not agree with the proposal due to some reservations, sources said.
Minfal also faced criticism for not consulting Central Board of Revenue (CBR) regarding duty before submission of the proposal.
"This proposal is required to be examined in greater detail, along with its impact on local industry. Past example of importing large variety of tractors, some of which soon turned into junk, needs to be avoided," CCA told Minfal. A committee, consisting of Ministers for Industries and Minfal and Prime Minister's Adviser on Finance, was constituted to look into various models of tractors and their prices and suggest duty structure and submit its recommendations.
Officials in Minfal said that local assemblers would decide about the model and the country from where tractors would be imported.
Asked what would be the price of imported tractors, they said it would be finalised by the committee, in consultation with the private sector.
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