ISLAMABAD: A judicial commission should be formed to inquire into corrupt practices and people behind black marketing of LPG as it has touched a historic high of Rs300/kg across the country.
Although the fixed price of LPG by Ogra is Rs204 per kg, but on the contrary, the government-owned SSGC has increased the price of LPG per kg to Rs300 with rate of domestic cylinder increasing by Rs235 to Rs3,550 and the price of commercial cylinder has reached a high of Rs13,620, ie, up by Rs908.
Irfan Khokhar, chairman LPG Association slammed the “criminal” silence of Energy Ministry, Ogra, and SSGC over unabated overcharging of LPG, adding that in the ongoing crisis, the state-owned gas company has become a mafia, by making illegal profits of 0.1 million rupees per tonne of LPG as 5,000 tonnes of LPG is sold in the country every day. The mafia and black marketers are minting millions. He again stressed on a thorough judicial inquiry into this highly serious matter.
He told media that currently, the country is facing the worst economic crisis apart from dollar shortage, and in these circumstances, measures of greater self-reliance by getting rid of the mafia are very necessary.
Khokhar strongly stressed on forming a judicial commission to probe into the corrupt practices and people minting money through overcharging of LPG, the commodity of a poor man.
The LPG Industries chairman said if Jamshoro Joint Venture Limited is made operational, it will end the mafia’s monopoly by obtaining production of 550 MT to 750 MT of LPG per day in the country. LPG can be imported for consumers at a fixed government price. IrfanKhokhar said that the country currently has only 2,000 metric tons of LPG production while the consumption has crossed 5,000 tons. In this way, 60 per cent of the country has become dependent on imported LPG. Irfan Khokhar said that due to astronomical prices, LPG has gone beyond the reach of consumers.
He said that a nationwide protest against the high price of LPG and black marketing was underway and he was travelling across the country to highlight this issue. Khokhar gave an ultimatum to the government for strictly check the overcharging, saying, otherwise, the sale of LPG in the entire country will be on a complete halt from January 31.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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