The government has decided to revive 'Price Control Committees' at District and Tehsil levels, with immediate effect, after observing that its directives are not being implemented in letter and spirit, official sources told Business Recorder.
The decision was taken at a recently held meeting by Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, who also holds the portfolio of Finance after resignation by Shaukat Tarin. Sources said that the Economic Co-ordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet in February had directed the Finance Ministry to co-ordinate efforts with the provinces to reactivate price monitoring and control committees for ensuring availability of essential household kitchen items at reasonable rates.
The Minister for Industries and Production and the Minister for Food and Agriculture had also been directed to hold consultations with provinces and other stakeholders including Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) to adopt a proactive strategy to monitor and maintain sugar stocks at satisfactory levels.
The government had also decided that an effective mechanism should be evolved to check, and punish, stockists/hoarders across the country. In compliance with these two decisions, the Finance Ministry informed the meeting that a meeting was held on February 23, 2010, which was chaired by Shaukat Tarin and attended by Secretaries of Finance, Minfa, Industries and Chief Secretaries/provincial representatives.
Meanwhile an inter provincial meeting, presided over by Industries Minister Hazar Khan Bijarani on February 12, 2010 decided that: (i) the provinces will monitor and maintain record of daily sugar production and how much is offloaded by each mill after maintaining particulars of buyers and likely destinations; (ii) provinces will further put in place effective mechanisms for the purpose of monitoring sugar stocks; and (iii) sugar mills shall be required to maintain 15 to 20 percent of their production as unsold stocks for emergency interventions.
The meeting had also directed the provincial governments to submit compliance reports of decisions taken at the meeting. Sources said that in a meeting to review situation of wheat, sugar and water shortages, held under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister on February 18, 2010, it was decided that the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) will ensure import of 0.5 million tons of white sugar (to commence in first week of March and to be completed by April 30, 2010). The remaining stocks of 0.7 million tons sugar should also reach the country by June 30, 2010. Moreover, the Ministry of Interior and provincial governments were asked to urgently put in place appropriate measures to control smuggling of sugar.
Sources said that the Ministry of Industries and Production, while circulating the minutes of the meeting of February 12, 2010, directed that updates/compliance report on actions on above decisions be provided by USC and TCP on weekly basis obtained from the concerned provincial departments vis-à-vis monitoring and establishment of requisite mechanisms. They said that when the compliance report was placed before the Prime Minister in the meeting, he observed that such meeting would not yield any result, and directed the Ministry of Industries and Production to revive the district and tehsil level Price Control Committees immediately to ensure availability of commodities at cheaper rates.
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