‘Benefit of subsidies must reach public’

The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Commerce, on Friday, directed the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) to devise a comprehensive mechanism that maximises the benefit of subsidies on the import of wheat and fertilisers for the public, particularly farmers.

Chairing the standing committee, Chairman Raza Rabani Khar directed the TCP management to submit a comprehensive plan to ensure a timely response from the corporation and the provision of maximum benefit to consumers.

Khar also assured members that the standing committee would coordinate with all the relevant ministries and government organisations to resolve the issue at the earliest.

The meeting also reviewed several past complaints about the quality of imported wheat and sugar, and recommended that a fool-proof mechanism be put in place to maintain the quality of imported commodities at all stages, starting from procurement to supply to end users.

TCP Chairman Rafeo Bashir Shah briefed the committee in detail about its mandate and scope, performance and market operations as well as the issues they faced.

He said that the TCP imported wheat, sugar and urea fertiliser on directives from the federal government for market stabilisation in the emergent conditions.

“The TCP is a public sector company fully owned by the federal government through the Ministry of Commerce. Its paid-up capital was Rs1 billion as on June 30, 2021, while its after-tax profit was Rs1.517 billion for FY 2020-21,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 1^st, 2022.

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