Cabinet directs interior ministry to curb urea smuggling

Hoarders and dealers interfering to maximise profit, cabinet told

ISLAMABAD:

The government has directed the interior ministry to bring the persons involved in urea smuggling to justice and advised the farmers against panic buying, reassuring them that there was ample amount of the fertiliser in the country.

The decision came during a meeting of the federal cabinet on Monday, wherein the members of the cabinet voiced concerns about the deteriorating issue of the scarcity of urea fertiliser.

Minister for Industries and Production Khusro Bakhtiar informed the cabinet that due to the huge difference in domestic and global prices of urea, hoarders and dealers were interfering and trying to make a profit.

The minister said that last year during the Rabi season, approximately three million metric tonnes of urea was produced. He noted that the production for the current Rabi season, which will conclude on March 31, will be approximately 3.3 million metric tonnes -- an increase of 11 per cent as compared to last year.

The minister said that the country produced ample urea fertiliser for the use of farmers and explained that due to huge differences in domestic and global prices, hoarders and dealers were interfering in the market to maximize profits.

He said that the federal government and the provinces had formed a monitoring mechanism under which it was keeping a track of urea being dispatched.

The cabinet directed the Ministry of National Food Security and Research to launch an effective media campaign on the actual production of urea, urging the farmers not to panic and buy urea.

The interior ministry secretary apprised the meeting of the steps being taken to curb the smuggling of urea fertiliser, saying a senior official from the Interior Ministry had been stationed in Balochistan to monitor the situation on the Chaman border.

In his remarks during the meeting, Prime Minister Imran Khan noted that manipulation of prices by cartels formed in different sectors was most disturbing. “Unfortunately, regulatory agencies responsible for protecting consumers against cartelisation have failed to take action against the culprits,” the premier lamented.

Referring to his recent meeting with the heads of regulatory authorities, PM Imran said that 3,800 cases against the regulators were pending in the courts.