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ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Industries and Production has expressed strong reservations over the closure of Utility Stores across the country.
The committee has summoned a comprehensive report from the Ministry of Industries and Production within 24 hours, including details of employee compensation packages and the overall shutdown plan.
The meeting of the standing committee was chaired by Syed Hafeez-ud-Din. During the session, PPP member Ejaz Jakhrani moved a motion, highlighting that thousands of Utility Stores employees have been staging a sit-in protest for the past ten days, yet the government has not made any concrete decision regarding their future.
Committee members criticized Federal Minister for Industries and Production, Rana Tanveer, accusing him of misleading the Parliament by falsely stating on the Assembly floor that the Utility Stores would not be shut down. They said this amounted to deceiving the Parliament.
Meanwhile, all Utility Stores across the country have been closed, halting all sales operations.
The Secretary of Industries and Production informed the committee that the Utility Stores Corporation was incurring an annual loss of approximately Rs 8.5 billion. He added that employees would be offered a golden handshake package as part of the closure process.
The committee strongly objected to the contradiction between the minister’s earlier assurances and the subsequent decision to close the stores.
It has demanded a detailed report within 24 hours, including plans for employee compensation and the overall closure process of the Utility Stores Corporation.
