The Economic Co-ordination Committee (ECC) has decided to launch a 'price control mechanism' by the end of August, 2008 in the wake of skyrocketing prices of essential food items. The decision was made during an ECC meeting held here at Sindh Governor House on Tuesday with Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani in the chair.
On sidelines of a Plots' Possession-Letters distribution ceremony at Port Qasim, Federal Minister for Ports and Shipping Qamar Zaman Kaira told Business Recorder that the ECC meeting had discussed to introduce a 'price control mechanism' to give relief to the poor. "We don't want to give subsidy on essential food items like flour, ghee, sugar etc to the rich," said the federal minister who had also attended the ECC meeting.
He said: "These items are simultaneously bought by a rich man, who does not deserve it. "He said his government would give subsidy to poor people through a proper, effective and transparent mechanism, which would be launched by August this year. Elaborating the mechanism Kaira said "Benazir Bhutto Cards" would be issued to poor people through the Nadra (National Database Regulatory Authority) database.
He further said the meeting had also discussed to shift imported wheat cargo handling burden from Karachi Port and Port Qasim to the Gwadar Port. Sources told this scribe that Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad Khan, Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Sherry Rehman, Minister for Finance Naveed Qamar, Minister for Ports and Shipping Qamar Zaman Kaira, Syed Khursheed Shah, Advisor to Prime Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, Minister for Defence Ahmed Mukhtar, Minister for Water and Power Raja Pervez Ashraf and high ups from the federal and provincial governments attended the ECC meeting.
The meeting, sources said, reviewed various issues including availability of daily use items in the markets, sale of essential food items on subsidised rates through utility stores, bringing stability in the prices of rice, import of wheat through Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) via Gwadar Port, flow of foreign investment, textile sector and other macro and micro economic indicators of the country.