Sugar to be provided at Rs130 per kg during Ramadan

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has decided to provide sugar at Rs130 per kg during Ramadan.

Minister for Industries and Production Rana Tanveer Hussain on Friday directed Chief Secretaries of all provinces to establish sugar stalls at the municipal council level and ensure uninterrupted supply of the commodity at Rs130 during the holy month of Ramadan.

According to a press release, the minister Rana Tanveer chaired a meeting of the Sugar Advisory Board in Islamabad.

Tanveer emphasized that the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) and provincial governments must ensure that sugar is accessible to the poor masses.

Around 230 sugar stalls will be set up in Sindh with the cooperation of provincial governments, while 405 selling points have been identified for sugar stalls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Hundreds of sugar stalls will also be set up in Punjab and Balochistan.

Provincial governments have been given the responsibility for security, cleanliness, and crowd management while the federal government will form a committee to resolve any potential issues.

Earlier, a report said that the government has reportedly failed in convincing millers to lower sugar prices ahead of the holy month of Ramadan.

As per details, the Pakistan government is trying to lower the sugar prices, but millers are not interested, the sources said.

Currently, the sugar is being sold at Rs155 per kg, but the government wants to lower the prices of the commodity to Rs120 per kg. However, the sugar millers are of the view that the per kg cost of the commodity is Rs170.

They further say, the sugar millers demanded that the government should abolish 18 per cent General Sales Tax (GST) on sugar as this is the only way to lower the prices by Rs25 per kg.