Sugar reforms committee to submit findings within one month

ISLAMABAD: A high powered committee, tasked to bring about reforms in the sugar sector on Monday said that it will submit its findings within thirty days. 

A meeting of the committee was held under the chairmanship of Federal Minister for Industries and Production Hammad Azhar. 

Members of the committee include adviser to Prime Minister (PM) on institutional reforms, special assistant to PM on accountability, minister for national food security and research, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) director general, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) chairman, ministry of industries and production secretary, law and justice secretary, ministry of national food security and research secretary and provincial chief secretaries.

The committee after deliberating on administrative, legislative and policy frameworks to improve the sugar sector has decided to submit its findings within thirty days. 

The committee was formed by the federal cabinet on June 9 under the chairmanship of Minister for Industries and Production Hammad Azhar. 

Earlier, a forensic audit report issued by the sugar inquiry commission had recommended that assistant commissioners and deputy commissioners should ensure full payments to farmers and that technology should be used for bookkeeping and a mechanism should be developed to ‘recover the looted amount’.

The forensic audit report also suggested improvement in the regulatory system urging the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), National Accountability Bureau and FIA to step up their efforts.

Shahzad Paracha
Shahzad Paracha
The writer is a member of Pakistan Today's Islamabad bureau. He can be reached at [email protected]

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