The Ministry of Industries and Production, having reportedly directed to prepare a proposal on war footing to lift ban on setting up new sugar mills, is refusing to comment on the issue. "Sorry, I cannot speak on this issue, as I can be fired," said an official of Industries Ministry.
There are unconfirmed reports that the Industries Ministry has sought expert opinion, from some sugar industry stakeholders, to prepare a comprehensive response to Prime Minister Secretariat, which is pursuing the matter. It could not be confirmed whether the Ministry has responded to Prime Minister Secretariat or not.
Two top political personalities from Punjab, who also hold public offices, are reported to be behind this controversial proposal, said one of the office holders of Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA), Punjab Zone.
PSMA, Punjab Zone Chairman Javed Kayani refused to talk on this issue publicly.
However, his business counterparts are of the view that he was pressurised to write a letter to Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani. Kayani in his letter to the Prime Minister acknowledged that there are still certain places where sugarcane is in abundance, and growers are facing extreme difficulty for timely disposal of their crop in the absence of sugar mills.
But the question remains: who asked him to write the letter, as none of the sugar mill owners is behind this proposal. "I do not know the objectives of this letter, but what I know is that Kayani was requested to write it," said an Islamabad-based sugar industry expert.
There are 75 sugar mills in Pakistan, capable of crushing 65 million tons sugarcane, and produce 6 million tons sugar annually. Highest sugar production was 4.7 million tons two years ago, and only 3.2 million tons this year.
According to official sources, Ejaz Ahmad Mir, Assistant Economic Advisor, III, Punjab, who is also actively pursuing the case, had sought information on three counts from Islamabad-based PSMA office. The questions were; (i) number of sugar mills, and total capacity, along with number of sugar mills, installed/commissioned currently;(ii) capacity percentage utilised during 2008-09; and (iii) any plan to increase sugarcane crop in near future. Sugar industrialists are of the view that since the capacities of sugar mills are already under-utilised (50 percent), and serious situation had arisen due to shortage of sugarcane, the ban on establishment of sugar mills in Punjab must remain.
When Kayani was contacted for comments on his letter, he declined to go into details, and said that he was unable to discuss the issue on phone, as some people were sitting with him. A couple of days ago, an official of Punjab government had stated that Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif is not interested in setting up a sugar mill in southern Punjab.
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