LAHORE: Authorities in Pakistan’s populous Punjab province will pull the plug off gas supply to industries in the province between December and February, Petroleum and Natural Resources Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has said. The move is aimed at ensuring gas supply to domestic users.
“Piped gas will be available to only households in Punjab during winter as per the government’s gas management plan,” the minister told the British Broadcasting Corporation yesterday.
In the other three provinces the government will try to meet the demand of the CNG and industrial sector. Abbasi said that despite shutting gas to industry there was no assurance of uninterrupted supply of the fuel to households in Punjab during winter.
Interest rate increase likely
KARACHI: The market in Pakistan expects a rise in interest rate to control the galloping inflation in the monetary policy announcement later this month. Industry and equity investors, however, oppose the interest rate hike as they believe that it would retard growth.
The State Bank needs to curtail rising inflation by tightening the flow of liquidity through higher interest rate. A senior banker said that October inflation (Consumer Price Index) rose 9.08 percent. It has reached close to the policy interest rate of 9.5 percent. It appears impossible for the State Bank to remain indifferent to the prevailing rate since inflation may enter into double digit next month.
The rate was 9 percent before it was raised to 9.5 percent in the last monetary policy.
Bulletproof car owners ‘target’
ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has sought details of the owners of bulletproof cars from across Pakistan to ascertain potential tax evaders, official sources say.
“We have sought details from the Large Taxpayer Units (LTUs) and Regional Taxpayer Offices (RTOs) about the owners of bulletproof vehicles to reconcile whether they were tax filers or tax evaders,” the FBR said here yesterday.
According to communication sent out by the FBR to all LTUs and RTOs, all concerned have been directed to furnish details about the bulletproof cars in their jurisdiction with immediate effect. The Member, Inland Revenue (IR) Policy, Shahid Asad, who is also the official spokesman, confirmed that the FBR had directed all the officers concerned to furnish these details with immediate effect.
North Pakistan hit by quake
Islamabad: An earthquake measuring 4.8 magnitude on the Richter scale struck the districts of Chitral and Shangla in northern Pakistan yesterday. The epicentre was the Afghanistan- Tajikistan area at the depth of 200km. No loss of life and property was reported.
Gunmen shoot at Nato tanker
Islamabad: Militants in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan shot at a tanker carrying oil for US-led Nato soldiers in Afghanistan. Pakistani security sources said the attack took place in Dasht area and the tanker was partially damaged. The driver and his assistant escaped unharmed. The attackers fled the scene.
Agencies
