The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet has reportedly approved that Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) would procure sugar from mills on the basis of competitive bidding with a maxim price of Rs 48 per kg instead of quota basis, a senior government official told Business Recorder.
The ECC recently allowed TCP to procure 0.3 million tons of sugar on the recommendation of Punjab government. The chief secretary Punjab gave a detailed presentation to the Prime Minister two days before the ECC meeting in Islamabad. The sources said that the ECC has also approved that maximum quota to be allocated to each sugar will be 10,000 tons.
The sources said the ECC further decided that 40 percent payment will be made at the time of buying the stock whereas 40 percent is linked to certification of Provincial Cane Commissioner that the concerned mill has cleared all its liabilities to growers and 20 percent at the time of physical possession for export purpose.
The ECC has also approved that if the TCP inflicts financial losses to due sugar export, it would be compensated through freight rebate of Rs 10.70 per kg already approved by the ECC for sugar mills. However, since international prices have increased in last two days to $386 per ton from $362 in addition to the rupee depreciation, it indicates that sugar mills would be least interested in selling their commodity to TCP even then TCP would give advertisement in newspapers.
The official was of the view that there are speculations that sugar mill owners in Sindh are procuring sugarcane at Rs 130-140 per 40-kg from growers who are on the roads against this injustice. Both the federal and provincial governments have already granted Rs 20 per kg freight subsidy to millers.
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