Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Economic Coordination Committee of the cabinet approved Rs 1.4 billion for payment of three months’ salary to the employees of Pakistan Steel Mill Corporation. The Federal Minister for Finance Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar chaired a meeting of the ECC on Thursday at the Prime Minister’s Secretariat.

To mitigate the sufferings of PSM’s employees and their families, ECC has approved three months’ pay and allowances by improving the previous practice of approving two months’ salaries. The Ministry of National Food Security and Research gave a detailed presentation regarding supply position of grain, pulse and its prices in the international market.

The chair directed the ministry to monitor supply position and prices of gram pulse to cater to the country’s demand. ECC also asked the ministry to coordinate with the provincial governments for ensuring price control and steady supply of gram pulse in the market. Sources said that that supply position of grain pulse came under discussion thrice at the forum but Dar did not approve, even for the third time.

ECC of the Cabinet approved the issuance of a sovereign guarantee by the government in respect of Syndicated Term Finance Facility (STFF) amounting to Rs136.5 billion for the power sector. Sources said that this money will be utilised to pay the circular debts of power companies.

ECC allowed the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources to replace Lower Zakum crude price with Das Blend crude price to determine the basket price for oil refineries. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources apprised the ECC that previously the Lower Zakum crude oil was included for determining basket price of crude being supplied to Oil Refineries in Pakistan. The Platts Global Alert has stopped publishing the price of the Lower Zakum crude oil. Therefore, a requisite replacement was accorded.