PSM bailout package

Pakistan Steel Mills have managed to increase production to 60 per cent for the past three days. After spending more than 500 million annually since 2008, PSM is now saying that they need more money for maintenance of machinery and they also claim that due to old machinery they will not be able to maintain this high production at 60 per cent. They have utilised the current grant from the government in paying back dated salaries to all its staff.

Shockingly, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has forwarded this request to the ECC. If Mr Ishaq Dar truly wanted to benefit Pakistan then he should have instead requested NAB to start criminal proceedings against the PSM and all its managers. Because the PSM has been paid 500 million rupees annually since 2008 and with this statement they admit that they have not spent any of this amount on maintenance and instead have utilised all this payment, around 3.5 billion rupees, on salaries alone.

The PSM has a staff of 1,600 while they require only 900 staff for 100 per cent production. But since 2008 the PSM have been producing at 6-8 per cent. Employees of PSM receive excellent salaries and extraordinary benefits like house rent, cars, fuel and even servant costs. PSM staff have been given their own houses and they also get electricity at subsidised rates.

So my question to Mr Ishaq Dar and to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is till when will we Pakistanis be paying for the salaries of lazy and criminal staff of PSM?

ENGR SHAHRYAR KHAN BASEER

Peshawar