Utility Stores being restructured to facilitate genuinely deserving people: minister

LAHORE: Federal Minister for Industries and Production Rana Tanveer Hussain on Saturday categorically denied shutting down the Utility Stores in the country.

Talking to newsmen after inaugurating the 9th Colour & Chem Expo at the Lahore International Expo Centre, he denied the impression that the Utility Stores were being shut down. He said the USC was being restructured so that only deserving people could get relief in eatables and grocery items.

“The government is already giving subsidies to deserving people through Baitul Maal and Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP).” The minister, however, admitted that subsidy was always misused in the country.

To another question about 105 and 18 percent taxes on the tractor industry, Tanveer Hussain said that he had already taken up the issue with the finance minister and FBR after conducting several meetings with the tractor association and hoped a positive outcome in the coming days. “Farmers and agriculture are our priority.”

Replying to another query, Tanveer Hussain said that political instability began in 2014 and later the founder of PTI was quoted as saying that he would become more dangerous if he was kicked out of the government. “The conspiracy has been hatched. It’s up to the institutions and nation to eliminate this political instability after the main conspirator has been arrested.” He said when things would get clearer, the characters would automatically be exposed.

The minister underlined the need to boost Pakistan’s exports, saying Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was already working on the revival of country’s economy. “We need to improve production of raw materials especially in dyes, chemicals and allied industries to avoid imports. Our import bill is much higher than our exports. Pakistan exports $30 billion annually while imports are even more than double our exports,” he said.

More than 300 exhibitors are representing dyes, chemicals, and allied industries in the event. Companies and their representatives from China, Malaysia, Turkey and Iran also joined the expo. The exhibition is being organised by the Event and Conference International, Rainbow Group and Punjab Dyes & Chemicals Merchants Association.

Admitting exports of India, Bangladesh and other developing countries are many times more than those of Pakistan, the minister said the prime minister had set the target for doubling exports in three years. He said the real agenda of PMLN government was the revival of economy, recalling in 2017 the country’s economy became the 24th biggest economy when Nawaz Sharif was the premier. But now the country stands at around number 40. “Our government is making efforts to join the club of 20 strongest economies in the coming three years.”

The minister, however, admitted that power tariff and policy rate were not favourable for the industry, hoping things would get better in the coming months. He claimed inflation had come down to 16 percent. He said he would receive proposals from chemicals and dyes industry for boosting their exports.

Abdur Raheem Chughtai, the convener of expo, said he would share with the minister a project to establish a Chemical Complex Plant to manufacture raw materials for textile, pharmaceutical, leather and paper industries to reduce the import bill.

Rashidul Haq, the event organiser and Director of Event and Conference International, said Shi Xianping, the Chairman of China Dyestuffs Industry Association, participated in the event.

Altaf A Ghaffar, the Senior Vice President of Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) and Muhammad Salahuddin, Secretary General of PCJCCI were also present. The exhibition will conclude on Sunday.