The Sindh government has once again announced a controversial tractor scheme on first come first serve basis despite the same being declared suspicious by stakeholders and probed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
Pakistan Association of Automotive Parts & Accessories Manufacturers (PAAPAM) Chairman Mumshad Ali said the scheme which the provincial government announced through advertisements in all major newspapers a week ago was also announced few months back but it was stopped and challenged by the NAB apparently for the reasons of non-transparency, lack of merit and favoritism to one manufacturer.
The Sindh NAB reportedly barred the Sindh government from processing with the controversial tractor scheme announced by Sindh Bank in April 2016. The Agricultural Engineering Hyderabad director in a letter written on April 15, 2016, revealed that the NAB, Hyderabad, visited directorate, agriculture engineering and asked to provide the information/documents of the scheme – provision of assistance to farmers on purchase of 11,000 wheel type tractors phase-III, copy of MoU signed with Sindh Bank during current year and copies of advertisement in the newspapers on April 15, 2016, for providing subsidy and assistance to the farmers.
According to the reports, the tractors scheme was non-transparent as the forms were allegedly distributed to sugar mills which would subsequently be handed over to the farmers who would purchase tractors from one company only.
“Sadly, the Sindh government has not moved an inch on this matter and has simply announced the scheme which is an exact replica of the previous one,” said a source in the tractor industry. “It has been learnt that farmers and dealers of tractors don’t find the forms available when they approach the bank’s branches. The staff excuses that the scheme is already booked,” he said.
One wonders what type of support is being given to the farmers who in the end will suffer badly by not becoming real beneficiary since only handful of the people will benefit from this scheme.
“A mafia behind the scene will buy out the quota paying Rs 50,000 or so to the successful applicant whose ID card and landholding is used as the base to get the quota and then these tractors are sold at the sole discretion of the mafia making a windfall profit from the quota that is beheld by only a few,” he added.
“This is happening in broad daylight with no one to catch hold of this malpractice,” said Mumshad Ali. “This kind of non-transparent schemes deprives local tractor manufacturers and importers of benefiting from the scheme which is being launched with the public’s money,” he added.
Likewise, he added, the manufacturers who keep waiting for such a scheme to get their rightful share can’t even get access to the scheme since it’s all pre-decided in favour of one manufacturer depriving all other players.
