Sindh Cabinet abolishes quota for all plea bargaining and non functional flour mills

Karachi (HRWN)- Sindh Minister for Information, Archives and Labor Saeed Ghani has said that Sindh cabinet has decided to impose penalties on the flour mills’ owners who take quota from Sindh government but do not run their mills. The provincial minister told that the cabinet decided that not only the strict action would be taken against all such mill owners but also the subsidy given to them would be withdrawn. According to the minister the provincial cabinet was told that the price of a weed bag in the market was Rs 5,000, while the Sindh government was giving it at Rs 3,000 after subsidy. He said that according to the cabinet’s decision, the mill owners would now have to prove by showing their electricity bills that they had run their mills. He said this while briefing the journalists after the meeting of Sindh Cabinet on Thursday. The meeting was chaired by Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, while all the cabinet ministers and administrative secretaries including the concerned officers attended the meeting. Saeed Ghani said that the cabinet was informed that there were 64 flour mills in Ghotki, Sukkur and Khairpur out of which 21 had chosen the option of plea bargain. The Provincial Minister for Information said that these flour mills had returned two billion rupees after plea bargain, out of which the Sindh government had received only 200 million rupees so far. Saeed Ghani said that the Chief Minister Sindh directed that the National Accountability Bureau be contacted to take back two billion rupees it received by the plea bargain. The cabinet also decided that no quota would be given to the flour mills who had either plea bargained or were defaulters or non-functional, the minister added. According to the provincial minister information, however, the cabinet decided that all those flour mills that had defaulted would be considered for giving quota only if they return their default within 15 days.
Sindh Information Minister Saeed Ghani said that Sindh Cabinet also approved Sindh Hindu Marriage Rules 2019 after discussions. Under these rules, all these cases would now be heard in the Family Courts, the Minister said.
Recruitment
Sindh Information Minister Saeed Ghani said that the Sindh Cabinet has decided that the recruitment on the posts of grades 1 to 4 would be done through selection committee, while in grade 5 to 15 would be conducted through the third-party. While hiring on jobs of above 15 grade would be done through the Public Service Commission, he added. The provincial information minister said that hiring would be locally conducted at the district level, where the chairman of the selection committee would be the deputy commissioner, while there would be a member from Services and General Administration Department. He said the provincial cabinet also decided that the recruitment in the police department would be made through the Institute of Business Administration. In addition, Saeed Ghani said that Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah had also constituted a committee consisting of Sindh Minister for Labor, Sindh Minister for Energy, Advisor to the Chief Minister on Law and Chief Secretary Sindh to formulate modalities for recruitment on posts of grade 1 to 15.
PTDC
Sindh Minister for Information, Archives and Labor Saeed Ghani said that the Sindh cabinet expressed serious concern that the federal government had yet to transfer the assets of Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation to the provinces even after the passage of years since the passing of 18th Amendment. According to the provincial minister, the members of the provincial cabinet also raised objections as to why the federal government wanted that the properties of Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation in Sindh, which is located in Karachi, Hyderabad Sukkur Bhambore and Moen-joDaro be handed over to the Sindh government after the lease. He said cabinet members were of the opinion that to talk about the handing over of the properties of PTDC to Sindh government after lease was against the spirit of 18th amendment. Saeed Ghani said that after consultation with the cabinet members the Chief Minister constituted a committee comprising Sindh Minister for Culture, Secretary of the Culture Department and representatives of Finance Department, which would look into the issues regarding transferring of assets of Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation to Sindh and would submit its report in the next cabinet meeting.
SST on Mobile Phone Services
Sindh Information Minister Saeed Ghani said that the cabinet was told that the Supreme Court’s ban on the recovery of Sindh Sales Tax on cellular mobile phone services cost Sindh government a loss of Rs 6.2 billion. According to the provincial minister for information, the provincial cabinet also approved the exemption of Sindh Sales Tax on cellular mobile phone services from 13.6.2018 to 24.4.2019. Saeed Ghani said that Cabinet approved that Sindh Sales Tax would be applicable on cellular mobile phone services from 25-4-2019.
CDA
Sindh Minister for Information and Labor Saeed Ghani told that the Cabinet members were informed that few amendments were made in Coastal Development Authority’s Act of 1994 through the Sindh Assembly. According to the provincial minister, through these amendments the CDA was given the auhority to carry out the development works in the coaster areas. He said Governor Sindh reversed the amendment bill saying that granting the authority to the Coaster Development Authority would be an interference in the functions of the Maritime Security Agency. Saeed Ghani told that while briefing the cabinet members the Adviser to Sindh Chief Minister on Climate Change said that the Coastal Development Authority was already in place and there would be no interference in any of the functions of the Maritime Agency through these recent amendments. Sindh Cabinet re-approved Coastal Development Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2019, provincial minister for information said.
SESSI
Provincial Minister for Information and Labor Saeed Ghani said that the provincial cabinet in its meeting discussed in detail the draft rules of Sindh Employees Social Security Institution. Sindh Cabinet discussed Sindh Employees Social Security (Contributions) Rules 2019, Sindh Employees Social Security (Appointment of member of Governing Body) Rules, Sindh Employees Social Security (Time Limit for Claiming Benefits) Rules and Sindh Employees Social Security (Medical Adviser’s Qualification) Rules. The draft of these rules was presented by the Labor Department. According to provincial minister for Information, Sindh Minister of Energy Imtiaz Shaikh suggested that social security should also be provided to workers working in the mines. Saeed Ghani said that Sindh Cabinet after discussion approved Sindh Employees’ Social Security Institution Rules, 2019.
According to Minister for Information Sindh Cabinet also approved Sindh Sustainable Forest Management Policy,2019 and Sindh Wildlife Protection Preservation, Conservation and Management Act 2019.
Sindh Information Minister Saeed Ghani said that Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah directed all the Administrative Secretaries that whenever they send a summary to him they must refer to the relevant laws according to which the CM should approve thar particular summary.
The cabinet also approved the minutes of the last cabinet meeting, provincial information minister said.