Revival of Pakistan Steel Mills seems impossible: ministry of industries and production

ISLAMABAD: The secretary of the Ministry of Industries and Production told the Standing Committee of the National Assembly on Industries and Production on Friday that the PSM has been declared ‘scrap’ as it is nearly impossible to revive the company.

This, according to the secretary, was decided in the meetings by the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) headed by the prime minister. The participants declared that the PSM’s existing infrastructure and out-dated technology make it impossible to revive the company. They further decided that the 19,000-acre land of the PSM will be utilized for establishing special economic zones (SEZs). The meeting of the Standing Committee of the National Assembly on Industries and Production was chaired by Chairperson Syed Hafeez ud Dinhere at the Parliament House on Friday.

The secretary briefly apprised the committee about the workings and performance of the ministry and its attached departments.While briefing about the PSM, he told the committee that two SEZs of 500 and 700 acres of land were established on the request of the chief minister of Sindh, and an additional 700 acres of land was allocated to the provincial government for the re-establishment of state-of-the-art steel mills with modern technology and infrastructure.

He also stated that the ministry secured approval for disconnecting gas supply to the PSM on June 30 to prevent the national exchequer from incurring an additional cost of approximately Rs2.5 billion.On the request of the federal minister for industries & production, the Committee decided to hold a separate meeting for an in-depth briefing on the PSM.

The MD of Utility Store Corporation (USC) also informed the Committee about the functions, performance and problems faced by the management of the USC.He stated that the USC was established in 1971 under the Companies Act, 2017 with the mandate to provide subsidized food items to targeted beneficiaries, adding that the USC has opened approximately 6,000 stores all over the country, out of which 4,775 stores are functional in all the provinces of the country. He further stated that during the last financial year, as per the prime minister’s directives, a relief package of Rs22.53 billion was allocated to the USC. Rs12.47 billion from this package was reserved for the Ramzan Relief Package. “Now, this year around Rs60 billion was allocated for the USC for the provision of subsidized food items, and it is likely to be approved by the federal cabinet,” he told the committee.

After listening to the briefing by the MD of the USC, the Committee decided to hold a separate meeting to review USC-related issues. The MD was asked to submit all audit reports before the committee in the next meeting.

The Committee expressed concern over the taxes levied on the industry by the federal government, and said that the chairperson of the FBR should be called to brief the Committee about the taxes levied on the industry and also sought government support to wave off taxes on the industrial sector for its revival.