ISLAMABAD: The total receivables of Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Services Corporation (Passco) from the federal government have accumulated to Rs74 billion, the National Assembly Standing Committee on National Food Security and Research was informed on Wednesday.

Passco Managing Director, Tariq Masud presented a detailed briefing and requested the committee chairman Malik Shakir Bashir Awan to pursue the case with the Ministry of Finance for the release of the accumulated amount.

The committee, after hearing the case of Passco, asked the finance ministry to release Rs74bn to the corporation on priority basis.

Mr Awan recommended that a policy may be framed for the timely disposal of the surplus wheat to avoid the payment of huge amount on account of mark-up.

The Passco official informed that Rs14 million was accrued daily against the outstanding receivables in the form of mark-up.

The standing committee recommended that the import duty on agricultural machinery should be reduced to maximum extent to marginalise the monopoly of tractor manufacturing units in Pakistan.

Passco, which maintains strategic reserves of wheat, presently has wheat stock of 1.4m tonnes which is higher than the required strategic reserve stock of 1m tonnes.

It will make adjustment during the current wheat procurement drive, however the total procurement may not exceed 400,000 tonnes.

Earlier, Minister for National Food Security and Research, Sikandar Hayat Khan Bosan informed the committee that Passco godowns at Karachi having capacity of 17,600 tonnes were under illegal occupation of private parties for the past 22 years.

However, due to untiring efforts of Passco, these godowns have been vacated after a protracted legal battle, and this is a great achievement, he remarked.

Published in Dawn, May 5th, 2016