(9th session) national assembly secretariat · minister for commerce (engr. khurram dastgir khan):...

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(9th Session)

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SECRETARIAT

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“QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWERS AND THEIR REPLIES”

to be asked at a sitting of the National Assembly to be held on

Monday, the 3rd March, 2014

(Originally Starred Question Nos. 34, 58, 151, 184, 188, 190, 201, 203 and204 were set down for answer during the 8th Session)

34. Admissibility is being re-considered.

58. *Dr. Ramesh Kumar Vankwani:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state:

(a) whether it is a fact that the National Horticulture Policy has notbeen formulated by the Ministry so far; if so, the reasons thereof;and

(b) whether there is any proposal under consideration of theGovernment to formulate the said policy; if so, when it will beimplemented?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a), (b)The subject of formulation of National Horticulture Policy does not fall under theambit of Ministry of Commerce; rather it pertains to Ministry of National FoodSecurity & Research and Provincial Governments.

@151. *Nafeesa Inayatullah Khan Khattak:

Will the Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment be pleased to state:

——————————————————————————————@Transferred from Interior Division.

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(a) whether it is a fact that the number of Pakistani expatriates hasincreased during the last two years; if so, the details alongwiththe year-wise ratio thereof; and

(b) the total number of Pakistani expatriates living abroad at presentalongwith the country wise details thereof?

Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment (Pir Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashidi) : (a) Yes.——————————————————————————————

Numbers of Pakistanis Expatriates during the last two years——————————————————————————————

2011 2012 Percentage Change (%)——————————————————————————————

6,286,915 7,422,200 (+)15.30——————————————————————————————

(b) Total number of Overseas Pakistanis living/working/ studying are7.422 million as on 31-12-2012. The data is obtained from Pakistan’s Missionabroad through Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Country-wise details are at Annex-A.

(Annexure has been placed in the National Assembly Library)

184. *Belum Hasnain:


(a) the authority who allocates the export quota of sugar at presentalongwith the prescribed procedure thereof;

(b) whether it is a fact that the outstanding amount of sugar canegrowers worth Rs. billion is not being cleared by the sugarexporters;

(c) if so, the steps taken by the Government in this regard?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) StateBank of Pakistan (SBP) in pursuance of the decision of the Economic CoordinationCommittee (ECC) of the Cabinet allocates the export quota of sugar. SBP vide itsCircular Letter No. 10/EPP.1(51)-Sugar-2013 dated 30th September, 2013 has

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advised authorized banks to process the cases for allocation of sugar export quotaas per following mechanism (Annex-I):—

i. Receipt of a minimum 25% of total contract value as advancepayment (evidencing by advance payment voucher, swift messageand reporting schedule/credit advice) and exporter must ship thesugar within 45 days from the date of SBP approval.

ii. Obtaining an irrevocable L/C from the buyer and exporter must shipthe sugar within 45 days from the date of SBP approval.

iii. Banks will forward the requests of Sugar Mills alongwith attestedphotocopies of clearance issued by the concerned CaneCommissioner to the concerned sugar mill, Contract, E-Form,irrevocable L/C or advance payment voucher, swift message andreporting schedule/credit advice, as the case may be, for SBPapproval.

iv. All requests should be addressed to the Director, Exchange PolicyDepartment, State Bank of Pakistan, I.I. Chundrigar Road, Karachiwith reference to the related F.E. Circular Letter on the subject.

v. SBP will allow permission against each E-Form on first come firstserved basis.

vi. Bank will send sugar export update to the Director, Exchange PolicyDepartment, State Bank of Pakistan, I.I. Chundrigar Road, Karachion daily basis.

vii. Incomplete requests will not be considered.

(b) Ministry of Industries & Production has informed that out of totaloutstanding amount of Rs. 216.95 billion, a total amount of Rs.216.88 billion(99.97%) has been paid to the sugarcane growers by the sugar mills for season2012-13.

(c) According to the Ministry of Industries & Production, the ProvincialCane Commissioners under the Provincial Agriculture Departments are responsiblefor ensuring payment to the sugarcane growers and due to their efforts 99.97%payments have been paid to the sugarcane growers for season 2012-13.


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188. *Nighat Parveen Mir:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the details ofthose new trade markets for which the European Union countrieshave given access to Pakistan during the period from March, 2008till date alongwith the sector-wise details of trade with each countrythereof?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): EuropeanUnion had granted duty free access to Pakistan through following two arrangementssince 2008 in all the 27 now 28 countries:

i. Autonomous Trade Preferences (ATPs) which gave duty free accessto 75 products from 15th November, 2012 to 31st December, 2013.As a result of ATPs there has been an increase of US$ 425 millionduring the period January – October, 2013.Pakistan’s exports toEU on 75 products from January to October 2013 amounted toUS$ 1.69 billion. Pakistan’s exports on these products for thecorresponding period in 2012 had been US$ 1.27 billion.

• The exports of products under ATPs grew by 33%

• The extent of Quota utilization has been as under so far——————————————————————————————

Quota Utilization Number of Products——————————————————————————————

100% or more 1875% - 99% 2165% - 74% 1150% - 64% 11Less than 50% 14

——————————————————————————————• Of overall increase in exports to EU of US$ 506 Million,

increase due to ATPs on 75 products amounted to US$ 425Million. Hence more than 80% of increase in exports to EUhas been due to ATPs?

• The share of ATPs in our total exports to EU grew from 27%to 32% during the same period?

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ii. GSP Plus from 1st January, 2014 onwards. This results in duty freeaccess to Pakistan on more than 90% products of our interests. It isexpected that Pakistan’s exports shall increase by atleast US$ 1.5billion by 2014. Pakistani products had been facing high tariffs underthe General Arrangement since 2005. Hence our products werebecoming uncompetitive vis-a-vis those from Bangladesh (being leastdeveloped country) had duty free access, Sri Lanka (had GSP Plus)and China which had competitive advantage due to economies ofscale.

The sectors that are likely to benefit as a result of duty free access toPakistan include intermediary textile goods like fabric and yarn, textile garmentsincluding hosiery, home textiles including bed, table, kitchen and toilet linen, articlesof leather, ethyl alcohol, footwear and plastics.

PAKISTAN’S TRADE WITH EU COUNTRIES

Value in thousand US$——————————————————————————————

Countries 2012-2013 ————————————————

Export Import——————————————————————————————

Austria 17,748 97,370Belgium 496,665 219,116Bulgaria 12,871 16,589Cyprus 3,429 1,806Czech Republic 269,57 21,594Denmark 92,433 303,023Estonia 31,620 45,623Finland 77,223 54,925France 956,317 418,560Germany 967,040 1,349,914Greece 48,427 41,143Hungary 10,463 21,882Ireland 45,685 41,216Italy 538,335 469,554Latvia 18,359 1,885Lithuania 44,879 14,062

——————————————————————————————

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Value in thousand US$——————————————————————————————

Countries 2012-2013 ————————————————

Export Import——————————————————————————————

Luxembourg 172 8,146

Malta 2,467 317

Netherlands 494,660 274,077

Poland 79,465 57,501

Portugal 129,000 13,859

Romania 20,948 45,029

Slovakia Republic 6,918 25,508

Slovenia 25,171 10,729

Spain 527,139 159,553

Sweden 101,481 195,837

United Kingdom 1,253,100 711,930——————————————————————————————

Sector Wise details of trade with each country is at Annex-I


190. *Begum Tahira Bukhari:


(a) whether it is a fact that Afghanis are running heavy business inPakistan without any registration; and

(b) whether there is any proposal under consideration of the Ministryto launch Kafeel (sponsorship) system in Pakistan like othercountries; if so, when it will be implemented?

Transferred to Interior Division for answer on next Rota Day.

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201. *Syed Asif Hasnain:

Will the Minister for States and Frontier Regions be pleased to statethe total number of Drone attacks made in the country during thelast five years till date alongwith the number of persons killed therein?

Transferred to Defence Division for answer on next Rota Day.

203. *Dr. Muhammad Azhar Khan Jadoon:


(a) the total number of cases of corruption registered in TradeDevelopment Authority during the year 2012-13 till date; and

(b) the action being taken against the responsibles?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) A totalof sixty-eight (68) FIRs have been registered so far by the FIA Crime CircleKarachi (CCK).

(b) The FIA has so far arrested following accused persons in thisregards:—

1. Mr. Tariq lqbal Puri, Ex-Chief Executive, TDAP2. Mr. Abid Javed Akbar, Ex-Chief Executive, TDAP3. Mr. Javed Anwar Khan, Ex-Secretary, TDAP4. Mr. Abdul Karim Daudpota, Ex-Director General, TDAP (now OSD

on the strength of Ministry of Commerce and also enquiry underE&D Rules, 1973 is being conducted against the officer).

5. Mr. Mirchoomal Khatri, Project Officer, TDAP (Under suspension).6. Mr. Muhammad Rafi, MS Vision Match Trading Int.7. Mr. Farhan Rasheed, MS Vision Match Trading Int.8. Mr. Adnan Zaman, Auditor, AvaisHHadirNomanRizwani Chartered

Accountant Firm9. Mr. Asim Rizwani, Auditor AvaisHHadirNomanRizwani Chartered

Accountant Firm10. Mr. Mahindar Komar,11. Mr. Rohail Jamal Hashmi S/o Jamal Hashmi, MS Farhan Ahmed

Junajo and family

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12. Mr. Najam-ul-Haq AVP Foreign Exchange NBP Main Branch,Karachi

13. Mr. Shakil Ahmed MS Talha Enterprises14. Raja Shahbaz Rabbani MS Raja Brothers15. Syed Muhammad Hasan MS Slama Trading Corp.16. Mr. Muhammad Salahuddin Ahmed MS Usra Traders.17. Mr. Muhammad Khurram Shah ABP Brach Manager MCB18. Mr. Shafi Muhammad, General Secretary Pakistan Fisheries Exporter

Association.19. Mr. Bakht Zar Shah, Personnel of Money Exchange Company20. Mr. Rashid Minhas, Personnel of Money Exchange Company21. Syed Muhammad Ali Rizvi22. Mr. Abdul Hanan Khan, MS Al Salik Impex23. Mr. Muhammad Sohil24. Mr. Atif Perviz S/o Perviz Yaqoob, MS Al Asar Textile and MS

Sehar Textile Impex.25. Mr. Wasif Khalil Brach Manager Dubi Islamic Bank26. Mr. Aslam Perzada S/o Shah Muhammad27. Mr. Kashif Aslam Relationship Manager JS Bank28. Mr. Muhammad Idrees MS Idrees Textile, Karachi29. Syed Adil Ali MS ARC Textile, Karachi30. Mr. Muhammad Ibraheem MS Al Asar Textile, Karachi31. Mr. Muhammad Nasir, MS Surti Febrics, Karachi.32. Mr. Fasil Rehan MS NF International33. Mr. Muhammad Ali MS Neha Traders34. Mr. Mutahir Fasih MS Al Asar Textile,35. Mr. Bakht Badar Fasih MS Idrees Textile36. Mr. Badi-ul-Alam, MS, Alam Enterprise37. Mr. Sarfarz S/o Muhammad Siddiq38. Mr. Sonil Komar MS Raja Brothers39. Mr. Arshid Mahmood MS AMZ Corp.40. Mr. Naeem Tahir S/o Muhammad Ismail41. Syed Javed Raza S/o Syed Taqi Raza42. Mr. Ghulam Jabir MS Ali Trade International43. Mr. Muhammad Shahid Khan S/o Muhammad Rais Khan44. Mr. Sohil Mahmood MS AMZ Corporation.45. Mr. Mahmood Rafi MS Moti Textile, Karachi

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Following accused persons have secured pre-arrest bail from the SindhHigh Court:—

1. Mr. Mohibullah Shah, Ex-Chief Executive, TDAP2. Mirza Kareem Baig, Ex-Secretary, TDAP3. Mr. Abdul Kabir Kazi, Ex-Secretary, TDAP (enquiry under E&D

Rules, 1973 is also being conducted against the officer).4. Mr. Younis Rizwani5. Mr. Mahmood Ahmed Rangoonwala6. Mr. Muhammad Yousaf Rangoonwala7. Mr. Abdul Nasir Rangoonwala8. Ms. Naseema Abdul Nasir9. Mr. Muhammad Aslam Rangoonwala

10. Mr. Sohil Rangoonwala11. Mr. Shoib Rangoonwala12. Mr. Noor Muhammad Ibrahim13. Mrs. Qamar Sultan14. Mr. Nizar Noor Muhammad15. Ms. Lila Noor Muhammad

Recoveries by FIA so far:——————————————————————————————

In shape of cash/pay orders In shape of seizure of(Pak. Rs.) properties (Pak. Rs.)

——————————————————————————————142,023,492 880 million

——————————————————————————————

204. *Qaisar Jamal:

Will the Minister for States and Frontier Regions be pleased to state:

(a) whether it is a fact that there are a number of colleges in FATAwhich have sanctioned staff but buildings have not beenconstructed therefor; if so, the names of those colleges alongwithreasons thereof; and

(b) whether there is any proposal under consideration of theGovernment to construct buildings for those colleges; if so, whenit will be implemented?

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Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Lt. Gen. (Retd.) AbdulQadir Baloch): (a) Yes. Out of 37 colleges the buildings of 22 colleges are underconstruction. Whereas, construction of the building of Government Degree CollegeDogar, Kurram Agency and Government Degree College Ara Khel, FR Kohatwas approved by the FATA Development Working Party on 23-05-2005 but dueto militancy in the area only 4% work has been done so far. The detail of thesecolleges is Annexed at A.

(b) Schemes for construction of Government Degree College Dogarand Government Degree College Ara Khel will be included in the next year AnnualDevelopment Program and if Law & Order situation improves, construction workwould be started. The detail of Agency/FR wise colleges alongwith sanctioned,filled & vacant posts and agency wise and class wise enrollment is Annexed at B.

(Annexures have been placed in the National Assembly Library)

@42. *Syed Asif Hasnain:

Will the Minister for Textile Industry be pleased to state the totalproduction of cotton in the country during the year 2013 alongwiththe benefit accrued therefrom during the said period?

Minister for Textile Industry: Cotton Production for the year2013-14 is 13.2 million bales (155 kg average weight). Its value comes toRs. 37.0 billion.

111. *Dr. Arif Alvi:


(a) the year wise total number of mobile/cell phones imported duringthe last five years alongwith value thereof;

(b) whether it is a fact that the said mobile/cell phones are beingassembled/manufactured in Pakistan;

(c) the steps being taken by the Government to encourage suchmanufacturers within the country to save the foreign exchange?

——————————————————————————————@Transferred from National Food Security and Research Division.

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Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) Theyear wise total number of mobile/cell phones imported during the last five yearsalong with value is placed at Annex-A.

(b) At present, none of the Pakistani Company assembles/ manufacturesmobile/ cell phone.

(c) facilitate indigenous assembly of cellular phones in Pakistan. CKDwas allowed at 0% under SRO 565(I)/2006 to manufacturers/ assemblers. Thedetails are placed at Annex-B.


112. *Muhammad Muzammil Qureshi:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the steps beingtaken to implement policies to enhance/tap true export potential ofthe country?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): In order todiversify the export basket to enhance trade and increase exports, Ministry ofCommerce, through Strategic Trade Policy Framework (STPF) has focused onthe following sectors of export during the years 2012-15:

i. Services Sectorii. Leather Sectoriii. Footweariv. Engineering Sector (Auto parts, Electric fans, Electric Machinery

and Transport equipment’s)v. Horticulture

vi. Process of Foodvii. Fish and fish preparationviii. Meat and meat preparationix. Dates and olives.x. Fruit & Vegetablesxi. Gems & Jewelleryxii. Marble and Granitexiii. Sports goodsxiv. Surgical goodsxv. Cutlery

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xvi. Onyx productsxvii. Pharmaceuticalsxviii. Garments.

The second Strategic Trade Policy Framework (STPF) was approved bythe cabinet with an aim to identify those aspects of Pakistan’s export competitivenesswhich have been relatively less attended. The STPF 2012-15 laid emphasis onthe following aspects’ of export promotion:

i. Focus on Regional Trade.ii. Creation of Regulatory Efficiencies.iii. Promote Agro-processed exports.iv. Increase exports from less developed regions of Pakistan.v. Promote Export of Services Sector.

vi. Enhance access to export financing and credit schemes.vii. Revamp Export Promotion Agencies.viii. Mobilize new investment in export oriented industries.ix. Facilitate Exporting industry overcome energy crises.x. Enhance Product and Market Development and Diversification.xi. Undertake effective Trade Diplomacy.xii. Increasing Green Exports.xiii. Rationalize the Tariff Protection Policy.xiv. Enhance Role of Women in Exports

To realize these policy objectives, following steps have been announcedin STPF 2012-15:

(i) Mark-up support of 2% on prevailing Long Term Financing Facility(LTFF) for future import/purchase of machinery has been announcedto encourage fresh investments in export oriented industries in a tougheconomic environment, for the manufacturers cum exporters of theselected sectors (i.e. Leather, Engineering, Horticulture, ProcessedFood, Marble & Granite, Sports Goods and Computer relatedservices) to increase their products.

(ii) To boost the exports of the country by promoting the value addedsector, a further markup reduction of 1.5% from the prevailing rates(8.4%) of Export Finance Scheme (EFS) will be provided to the fishand fish preparation, processed foods, meat and meat preparations,

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sports goods, footwear, leather products, surgical goods, cutlery,onyx products, pharmaceuticals, electric fans, transport equipmentand electrical machinery sectors.

(iii) To offset the increasing cost of utilities, selected non-textile exportingsectors (Fish and Fish Preparations, Processed Foods, Meat andmeat preparation, Sports goods, Footwear, Surgical goods/medicalinstruments, Cutlery, Electric Fans, Auto Parts and Furniture) will beprovided ad-hoc relief 3% of FOB.

(iv) To support the initiative and to motivate exporters, subsidy on theopening retail sale outlets will be provided upto 75%, 50%, 25%per annum of the rental cost in the export markets in Asia, Africa andAustralia.

(v) To increase income of the farmers and foreign exchange earnings,the government will provide 50% subsidy in the cost of plants andmachinery for dates and olive processing.

(vi) To incentivize establishment of fruits processing plants in Gilgit Baltistan(GB), the government will provide 50% subsidy in the cost of plantand machinery for establishing processing plants for fruits andvegetable in GB.

(vii) To increase processed meat exports from the bordering regionsmarkup subsidy @ 50% of the prevailing markup rate, for setting upof Meat processing plans in KP, Baluchistan and Gilgit Baltistan willbe provided.

(viii) To control un-scientific and explosive based orthodox mining andprocessing methods, mark up subsidy @ 100% of the prevailingmark-up rate and 50% subsidy for wire saw, cutting machinery toreduce wastages for establishing mining and processing in KPK, GBand Baluchistan, will be provided.

(ix) To sustain communication between the Government and Privatesector for promotion of leather exports, Commerce Division willestablish Leather Export Promotion Council.

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(x) To boost services exports from Pakistan, Services ExportDevelopment Council will be established.

(xi) A domestic commerce wing has been created in the Ministry ofCommerce comprising two units, namely the Domestic CommerceUnit and the Trade in Services Unit. The necessary Human Resourcehas been provided to these units in Ministry of Commerce and thesehave been made operational. The inter-governmental DomesticCommerce Reform and Development Committee is being set up tooversee the introduction of necessary laws, regulations andinstitutional arrangements to develop domestic commerce in Pakistan.

(xii) High tariff protection maintained over a period of time tends to erodecompetitiveness and affects consumer welfare. National Tariff Commission hasbeen directed to adopt following guiding principles to create a competitiveenvironment:—

i. Promote competitive markets in Pakistan.

ii. Ensure conformity to international agreements and practices.

iii. Promote domestic and foreign investment.

iv. Create level playing field for Pakistani firms in international aswell as domestic markets.

v. Due consideration to consumer welfare.

vi. Cater to the changing needs of Pakistan’s economy.

vii. Create an enabling environment to pursue legitimate goal ofindustrialization in Pakistan.

viii. Pakistani exporters need legitimate trade financing support inthe wake of challenges of high interest rates and limitedavailability of financing for export and investment. It was decidedto establish an Export Import bank. The EXIM bank, with thehelp of provincial governments, would not only provide exportcredit, it would also provide supplier’s credit and export creditguarantees. A committee has been constituted under the

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chairmanship of Governor State Bank of Pakistan to work outdetailed modalities for establishing the EXIM Bank.

ix. Export promotion needs strong support by a country’s ExportPromotion Agencies [EPAs]. EPAs in Pakistan are under-resourced and not tuned to modern challenges of exportpromotion. It has been decided to:—

i. Overhaul trade offices abroad by providing both financialand improved human resource after carrying out aperformance analysis.

ii. Constitute a high level ‘Trade Committee’ under thechairmanship of Minster for Commerce with membershipfrom relevant Ministries/ departments at federal andprovincial levels to evaluate our trade performance on aquarterly basis and to address specific issues hamperingPakistan’s foreign trade and competitiveness.

The first ever Textile Policy was approved by the Cabinet in August, 2009.The Textile Policy envisages enhancement of export performance of Textile Industryto the target of $25 billion over the five years. This is to be achieved through a setof immediate short term support measures and medium & long-term initiativesaimed at infrastructure & skills development.

The textile industry Division has issued the following Orders in addition tothe SRO issued by the Federal Board of Revenue for duty free import of textilesmachinery:—

1. Drawback of Local Taxed and Levies (DLL) Order, 2009.

2. Export Finance Mark-up Rate Facility (EFS) Order, 2009.

3. Markup Rate Support for Textile Sector Order, 2009.

4. Reimbursement of EOBI Contribution Order, 2009.

5. Technology Up-gradation Fund Scheme Order 2010.

6. Past Claims of R&D Support Scheme.

7. PTA Monetization.

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Rs. Billion——————————————————————————————

2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13——————————————————————————————Funds released by 9.75 7.5 6.0 2.0Finance Division——————————————————————————————

It is pertinent to mention that Cabinet while approving the Textiles Policy2009-14 approved financing plan of Rs. 188.6 billion, however, during first fouryears of the Textile Policy only Rs. 25.25 billion were released by the FinanceDivision.

During current financial year Rs. 3.5 billion are provided by the FinanceDivision so far against the approved financing plan of Rs. 35 billion.

113. *Dr. Azra Fazal Pechuho:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the steps beingtaken by the Government to ensure the implementation of revisedcode of corporate governance to be eligible to concessions of GSPplus status alongwith assistance to sector to increase exports to EU?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): That thereis no ‘revised code of corporate governance’ to become eligible for EU’s GSPPlus Scheme. The Scheme for 2014 like the one for 2005 onwards requires thecountries that fulfill economic criterion of eligibility to ratify and implement 27International UN Conventions on human rights, labour rights, climate change,narcotics control and corruption. The Scheme’s original name is ‘European Union’sSpecial Incentive Arrangement for Good Governance and SustainableDevelopment’. Through this Scheme the European Union encourages beneficiarycountries to undertake measures for adopting policies which are beneficial in thelong term for the state and improve governance.

Ministry of Commerce is coordinating with other Federal Ministries foreffective implementation of these Conventions. These 27 Conventions are underthe purview of following ministries:

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——————————————————————————————Responsible Ministry Number of Conventions

——————————————————————————————Ministry of Law Justice Human Rights 7

Ministry of Human Resource Development 8

Ministry of Climate Change 8

Ministry for Narcotics Control 3

Ministry Foreign Affairs 1——————————————————————————————

As a result of the grant of GSP Plus to Pakistan, Government of Pakistanlike Governments of other beneficiary countries has to:

• Maintain ratification of the Conventions.

• Accept the reporting requirement, monitoring and review ofimplementation as mentioned in the text of each United NationsConventions.

• Participate and cooperate with the European Commission inmonitoring the implementation of the Conventions?

The obligations for the Government of Pakistan now mainly include:

• Timely submission of periodic reports by Federal Ministries mentionedabove on Conventions to UN monitoring bodies.

• To harmonize domestic laws with the UN Conventions whererequired

• To address concerns raised by other ratifying states and Non-Government Organizations on reports submitted by the Government.The European Union has now also shared a ‘Score Card’ withbeneficiary countries for keeping track on the steps taken by theGovernments to fulfill the obligations of the Conventions. Ministry ofCommerce is now coordinating with other Federal and Provincialdepartments to undertake necessary steps for addressing salientshortcomings and timely submission of the reports.

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The list of Conventions mandatory for GSP Plus is at Annex-I.

It is expected that as a result of grant of GSP Plus to Pakistan, there willbe an increase in exports of US$1.5 billion to European Union member states inone year. It is estimated that 100,000 more jobs will also be created. The sectorsthat are likely to benefit from withdrawal of high duties include the following:——————————————————————————————

PRODUCT EXPORT Tariff ProjectedVALUE applied till IncreaseIN 2012 31st by 2014

(US $ December, (US$Million) 2013 million)

——————————————————————————————Ethyl 42.32 6.1% to 19.2 10.58Alcohol Euros/H1

Carpets 48.62 6.4% 12.15

Plastics 50.13 3% (+5.1% 12.50ADD)

Footwear 71.88 Up to 12% 18Leather 509.21 Up to 5.5% 127.25

Non Value 885.17 Up to 6.4% 221.25AddedTextiles

Home 1,230 Up to 9.6% 307.5Textiles

Textile 1,730.08 Up to 9.6% 408Garments

——————————————————————————————Assistance to the Sectors to increase Exports to EU

Government of Pakistan has decided to undertake the following:

• Accord priority to export processing industry in energy loadmanagement.

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• Dissemination of information amongst the stakeholders throughseminars and workshops by Trade Development Authority of Pakistan

• Prepare targeted marketing strategy for promoting exportable goodsto EU

Furthermore

(i) The Ministry of Textile Industry has constituted a GSP Plus facilitationcommittee comprising the government departments concerned andentire textile associations registered with the Directorate General ofTrade Organizations (DGTO) under Ministry of Commerce tomonitor the exports to EU and extend any facilitation to counter theimpediments to exports to EU.

(ii) Under Textiles Policy 2009 various initiatives have been taken andthe Government has released Rs. 3.5 billion in the last two months.The First tranche was released in December 2013 of Rs. 1.5 billion,which was disbursed in Drawback of Local Taxes and Levies Schemeby the State Bank of Pakistan, and the second tranche has justrecently been released which will also be disbursed by the StateBank of Pakistan in Support Schemes.

Ministry of Commerce and Trade Development Authority of Pakistanarranged a series of seminars on GSP Plus status granted by EU to Pakistan:

• The first Seminar of this series was arranged at Karachi on 26thDecember 2013 just before the commencement of the GSP PlusScheme. It was attended by a large number of eminent exportersand industrialists from almost all sectors but a majority of them werefrom the textile sector.

• Another seminar of this series was arranged at Lahore on 30thDecember 2013 in LCCI premises. It was also attended by a largenumber of exporters and industrialists from the textile sector.

Effective Use of Exhibitions

• Participation of about 220 Pakistani companies in Heimtextil (8-11January 2014 at Frankfurt, Germany) out of which 45 were underthe auspices of TDAP.

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• In order to obtain maximum benefit from the event, the RegionalCommercial Counselors (London, Berlin, the Netherlands) weredirected by TDAP to lead buyers’ delegations from their respectivestations on the occasion of Heimtextile 2014.

• During Heimtextil 2014 TDAP arranged meetings on GSP Plus withthe participants and international buyers. Pakistan’s CommercialCounselors from London, Berlin and Netherlands personally briefedthe buyers’ delegations accompanying them and other visitors aboutPakistan’s export potential and industrial base.

• Moreover, under the umbrella of TDAP, Pakistani manufacturers ofhigh end textile products are participating in a world renownedexhibition i.e. Texworld Paris to be held in Feb 2014 to obtainmaximum benefit from GSP Plus status granted to Pakistan by EU.

Help Desk

In order to obtain the maximum benefit of GSP Plus scheme a help deskhas been created in TDAP for the facilitation of manufacturers and exporters.

Web Portal

To ensure a continuous, interactive and awareness medium, a web portallink on TDAP’s website is being created on the GSP Plus Scheme.

Conference

The Commercial Section, Paris is holding a Conference on GSP Plus on18th March 2014 in collaboration with TDAP.

Pakistan Central European Economic Cooperation Forum

To obtain additional benefits from the GSP + Scheme and spreadingawareness in the Central and Eastern Europe, an Economic Cooperation Forumis scheduled to be held on 8th May 2014 in Poland, as a part of “EuropeanEconomic Congress” which will be focusing on promoting Pakistan’s productsand seeking investment from the region to Pakistan.

On this occasion a delegation comprising 20 members representing differentpotential sectors including the textile sector would visit Poland to market andbrand Pakistan.

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Annex-ICore human and labour rights UN/ILO Conventions

1. Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime ofGenocide (1948)

2. International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of RacialDiscrimination (1965)

3. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966)

4. International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights(1966)

5. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination AgainstWomen (1979)

6. Convention Against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or DegradingTreatment or Punishment (1984)

7. Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989)

8. Convention concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour, No. 29(1930)

9. Convention concerning Freedom of Association and Protection ofthe Right to Organise, No. 87 (1948)

10. Convention concerning the Application of the Principles of the Rightto Organise and to Bargain Collectively, No. 98 (1949)

11. Convention concerning Equal Remuneration of Men and WomenWorkers for Work of Equal Value, No. 100 (1951)

12. Convention concerning the Abolition of Forced Labour, No. 105(1957)

13. Convention concerning Discrimination in Respect of Employmentand Occupation, No. 111 (1958)

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14. Convention concerning Minimum Age for Admission to Employment,No. 138 (1973)

15. Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for theElimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour, No. 182 (1999)

Conventions related to the environment and to governanceprinciples

16. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of WildFauna and Flora (1973)

17. Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer(1987)

18. Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements ofHazardous Wastes and Their Disposal (1989)

19. Convention on Biological Diversity (1992)

20. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change(1992)

21. Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (2000)

22. Stockholm Convention on persistent Organic Pollutants (2001)

23. Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention onClimate Change (1998)

24. United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (1961)

25. United Nations Convention on Psychotropic Substances (1971)

26. United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugsand Psychotropic Substances (1988)

27. United Nations Convention against Corruption (2004)

23

114. *Muhammad Rehan Hashmi:

Will the Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Haman ResourceDevelopment be pleased to state:

(a) whether it is a fact that the targets have been set to provide jobsto Pakistanis in various countries; and

(b) the types of training provided to Pakistani labourer by theMinistry during the year 2013-14?

Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment (Pir Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashidi) : (a) No foreignemployment targets have been fixed by the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis andHuman Resource Development It depends on the demand generated on the basisof the need of the employers in different fields in different countries.

(b) No technical training is provided by this Ministry during the year2013-14. However, this Ministry is collaborating with NGOs and OverseasEmployment Promoters for providing technical trainings to the Pakistani youth insuch trades/skills where demand in the international market is available.

115. *Muhammad Rehan Hashmi:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the steps taken bythe Government to increase the exports of Pakistani Precious Stonesto International market?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan):

International Marketing

• TDAP organizes Expo Pakistan every year in which around 15 - 20jewellry firms participate every year and are given a whole separateenclosure to exhibit their products to foreign buyers.

• In the past TDAP has been participating in the Tuscan show, ArizonaUSA. But for the last 3 years TDAP is not participating due to lesseffectiveness of the show. However, TDAP is exploring newinternational exhibitions.

24

• 15th Pakistan Gems and Minerals Show (Peshawar) is also beingplanned by TDAP

• International Trade delegations are also being planned by TDAP.

Incentive provided to the Exporter

Textile and clothing sector is the major sector of exports of Pakistan.However, in order to diversify the export basket, Commerce Division throughStrategic Trade Policy Framework (STPF) 2012-15 has focused on the followingsectors of export:

i. Services Sectorii. Leather Sectoriii. Footweariv. Engineering Sector (Auto parts, Electric fans, Electric Machinery

and Transport equipments)v. Horticulture

vi. Process of Foodvii. Fish and fish preparationviii. Meat and meat preparationix. Dates and olives.x. Fruit & Vegetablesxi. Gems & jewelleryxii. Marble and Granitexiii. Sports goodsxiv. Surgical goodsxv. Cutlery

xvi. Onyx productsxvii. Pharmaceuticalsxviii. Garments

(b) Government has fixed export target of US$ 95 in the STPF-2012-15for three years. Following incentives have been announced in STPF 2012-15 tofacilitate the exporters meet this export target.

25


(ii) To boost the exports of the country by promoting the value addedsector, a further markup reduction of 1.5% from the prevailing rates(8.4%) of Export Finance Scheme (EFS) will be provided to the fishand fish preparation, processed foods, meat and meat preparations,sports goods, footwear, leather products, surgical goods, cutlery,onyx products, pharmaceuticals, electric fans, transport equipmentand electrical machinery sectors.





(vii) To increase processed meat exports from the bordering regionsmarkup subsidy @ 50% of the prevailing markup rate, for setting upof Meat processing plants in KP, Baluchistan and Gilgit Baltistan willbe provided.

26




Skill Development

Gems and Gemological Institute of Pakistan (GGIP) was established in2001 by Ministry of Commerce Government of Pakistan in Peshawar to initiateskill development programme. The GGIP is under working administrative &functioning control of TDAP. Following three types of courses have been designedand taught in (GGIP).

1. Basic Gemology,2. Gem cutting (Faceting) and3. Gemstone cutting (Carving)

These courses are designed to add value to exporters/exports by:

1. Equipping local Gemstones dealers with modern knowledge ofGemology and produce skilled labor force for gem cutting industry.

2. Endeavouring to promote Gems Sector of Pakistan.3. Aiming to increase Gemstones Exports.4. Aiming to get maximum benefits of our gems wealth.5. Generating employment opportunities.

All the gemstones found in and around Pakistan are taught. Every theoryis supported by practical. Difference between natural and synthetic stones ishighlighted. In addition to scientific knowledge, lectures on marketing, developmentof small and medium enterprises and export procedures are also delivered.

• Gems and Gemological Institute of Pakistan (GGIP) is runningsmoothly, however some funding issues are being faced by the GGIPand its being considered through Export Development Fund.

27

116. *Parveen Masood Bhatti:


(a) whether it is a fact that the plan to declare India as the MostFavorite Nation has been abandoned;

(b) if so, the reasons thereof?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a), (b)During the meeting, of Commerce Ministers of Pakistan and India held on January18. 2014 at New Delhi, both sides agreed on Non-Discriminatory Market Access(NDMA) on reciprocal basis, instead of granting Most Favoured Nation (MFN)status to India by Pakistan. Presently, the Ministry of Commerce is in the processof consulting the stakeholders both from public and private sectors on the matterof giving NDMA to India, before proceeding further in this matter.

117. *Parveen Masood Bhatti:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the steps taken bythe Government to boost-up trade volume and exports of the country?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): 1. TheGovernment has taken following steps to boost-up trade :

(a) Ministry of Commerce has signed following three Free TradeAgreements (FTAs) and Preferential Trade Agreements(PTAs) withdifferent countries to create greater trade flows from and into Pakistan:

(i) FTAs with Malaysia, China and Sri Lanka.

(ii) PTAs with Indonesia, Iran and Mauritius.

(b) The Government has successfully secured the GSP + status in theE.U which will have positive impact to boost trade between Pakistanand EU countries in general and increase Pakistan’s exports to EUin particular. Grant of GSP plus status by EU to Pakistan is a fruitionof efforts of the government and our exporters will become muchcompetitive due to ‘zero tariff’ or duty free access to more than90% of our products in EU. Pakistan’s total exports to EU during

28

the calendar year 2012 amounted to US$ 5.6 billion and an increaseof more than US$ 1.5 billion is expected in our exports to EU duringthe year 2014.

2. In order to increase exports by diversification of our export basket,Ministry of Commerce, through Strategic Trade Policy Framework (STPF) 2012-15, has focused 18 sectors of export promotion during the years 2012-15. TheList of these sectors is attached at ‘Annex A’.

The Government has fixed export target of US$ 95 in the STPF-2012-15 for three years. Following steps have been announced in STPF2012-15 to meet this export target.




(iv) To support the initiative and to motivate exporters, subsidy on theopening retail sale outlets will be provided up to 75%, 50%, 25%per annum of the rental cost in the export markets in Asia, Africa andAustralia.

29







Annex-A—————————————————————————————— S. No Description of 18 Sectors Focused for Export Promotion——————————————————————————————

01 Services Sector02 Leather Sector03 Footwear04 Engineering Sector (Auto parts, Electric fans, Electric Machinery

and Transport equipments)05 Horticulture06 Process of Food07 Fish and fish preparation

——————————————————————————————

30

—————————————————————————————— S. No Description of 18 Sectors Focused for Export Promotion——————————————————————————————

08 Meat and meat preparation09 Dates and olives.10 Fruit & Vegetables11 Gems & Jewellery12 Marble and Granite13 Sports goods14 Surgical goods15 Cutlery16 Onyx products17 Pharmaceuticals18 Garment

——————————————————————————————

118. *Sheikh Salahuddin:

Will the Minister for States and Frontier Regions be pleased to statethe steps being taken by the Government to make voluntaryrepatriation of Afghan Refugees successful?

Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Lt. Gen. (Retd.) AbdulQadir Baloch): The repatriation of Afghan refugees is guided by the TripartiteAgreement signed between Government of Pakistan, Government of Afghanistanand UNHCR, valid up to 31st December, 2015. The said Agreement guides andregulates the repatriation of registered Afghan refugees back to their country withthe assistance of UNHCR. Since 2002, 3.8 million Afghan refugees have beenrepatriated on voluntary basis under the auspices of the said agreement.

To deal with the issue of repatriation of remaining registered Afghanrefugees, a Ministerial Committee has been constituted to find ways & means toensure expeditious voluntary repatriation of Afghan refugees and their reintegrationinside Afghanistan. Efforts are being made to repatriate maximum number of Afghanrefugees till the given date i.e. 31st December, 2015.

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119. *Saman Sultana Jaffri:


(a) the total number of exhibitions arranged to promote Pakistanigoods for export during the year 2013-14; and

(b) whether there is any proposal under consideration of theGovernment to arrange such exhibitions in future; if so, thedetails thereof?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) Totalnumber of exhibitions planned by the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan(TDAP) for promotion of Pakistan-’s exports for the year 2013-14 (region wise)are as under:

Europe: 24Asia (incl. China) 30Americas 21Africa 11Fairs Allocated to 07Trade Bodies

—— Total: 93

——

(b) TDAP is in consultations with Trade Bodies and Pakistan Missionsabroad for arrangement of exhibition in future. TDAP regularly prepares annualcalendar of international exhibitions to showcase Pakistani products for foreignbuyers.

120. *Mrs. Shahida Rehmani:

Will the Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourcesDevelopment be pleased to state:

(a) whether it is a fact that a number of Flats/Houses are lyingvacant which were constructed by the Ministry under WorkersWelfare Fund;

(b) whether it is also a fact that a number of Flats out of those haveillegally been occupied;

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(c) if the answers to parts (a) and (b) above are in the affirmative,the details thereof alongwith the steps being taken to providesaid Flats/Houses to the workers/poor people?

Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment (Pir Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashidi) : (a) ) The M/o OverseasPakistanis and Human Resource Development has not constructed any plot/houseitself However flats/houses are constructed by the respective Provincial WorkersWelfare Boards (PWWBs). These Boards are the custodian of such housing unitsand also make the allotments to the entitled workers. However a number of Flats/Houses constructed by the Provincial Workers Welfare Boards are lying vacant.The detail is enclosed at Annex-I.

(b) Yes, a number of Flats out of those constructed by PWWBs haveillegally been occupied. The detail is enclosed at Annex-II.

(c) • Allotment of Houses/Flats which are lying vacant is under process inPWWBs.

• The matter with regard to eviction of illegal occupants is being takenup by filing suits in the court of law by respective Provincial WWBs.

Annex-I

DETAIL OF HOUSES/FLATS LYING VACANT

• Out of the above completed housing schemes, following Flats / Housesare lying vacant:——————————————————————————————S. No. Name of Colony No. of Flats No. of Houses——————————————————————————————

PUNJAB

1. Allama Iqbal Town, Lahore 04 -2. Defence Road, Lahore 10 -3. Rahim Yar Khan - 224. Muzaffargarh - 05

—————————————————————————————— Sub Total: 14 27

——————————————————————————————

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——————————————————————————————S. No. Name of Colony No. of Flats No. of Houses——————————————————————————————

SINDH

1. Hyderabad 1,504 -2. Jahmpeer - 1003. Kotri 512 -4. Dadu - 505. Gharo - 506. Nooriabad 192 -7. Larkana 96 -8. Shikarpur - 20

—————————————————————————————— Sub Total: 2,304 220

——————————————————————————————

BALOCHISTAN

1. Gawadar - 22——————————————————————————————

Sub Total:- - 22——————————————————————————————

Grand Total: 2,318 269——————————————————————————————

Annex-II

DETAIL OF FLATS OCCUPIED BY ILLEGAL OCCUPANTS——————————————————————————————S.No. Name of Colony No. of Flats Remarks——————————————————————————————PUNJAB

1. Lahore 04 Occupied unauthorizedly——————————————————————————————

Sub Total: 04——————————————————————————————

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——————————————————————————————S.No. Name of Colony No. of Flats Remarks——————————————————————————————

SINDH

1. Gulshan-e-Maymar 1,000 Occupied by the flood effecteesas per instruction of the Revenue

2. Hyderabad 128 Department Govt. of Sindh.——————————————————————————————

Sub Total: 1,128——————————————————————————————

KPK

1. Peshawar 58 Occupied unauthorizedly

2. Peshawar 15——————————————————————————————

Sub Total: 73——————————————————————————————

Grand Total: 1,205——————————————————————————————

121. *Dr. Nafisa Shah:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state whether it is afact that the Afghan Transit Trade has been shifted to Iran; if so, theloss suffered by the Government during the year 2013-14?

Transferred to Revenue Division for answer on Next Rota Day.

122. *Khalida Mansoor:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state:

(a) the total number of Pakistanis wanted in UK and USA at present;and

(b) the steps being taken by the Government for their repatriation?

35

Minister for Foreign Affairs:

UK

(a) & (b) As per the FCO, at present, there are no Pakistanis wanted bythe UK authorities on criminal charges.

USA

(a) The information has been sought from the Pakistan Embassy inWashington. The details, which have to be collated from varioussources, will be provided to the National Assembly on the next RotaDay.

(b) As regards the steps being taken for the repartition, our Mission inthe US maintains close contact with the US authorities. However,the number of Pakistani prisoners in the US is as follows:

——————————————————————————————S. No. Area of Jurisdiction No. of Detainees

——————————————————————————————1. Embassy of Pakistan, Washington D.C. 692. Consulate General of New York 143. Consulate General of Chicago 034. Consulate General of Houston 285. Consulate General of Los Angles 06

—————————————————————————————— Grand Total 120

——————————————————————————————

123. *Mr Muhammad Ali Rashid:


(a) whether it is a fact that the Government announced that thetransit trade will be allowed by 2nd February, 2014; and

(b) the steps taken by the Government to open its land routes fortransit trade in accordance with the provisions of the WorldTrade Organization?

36

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a), (b)Under Afghanistan Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement, 2010 (APTTA), transittrade facility is extended only to Afghanistan to import goods via Karachi Portand transit the same using Pakistan’s land routes. Afghanistan can also export toIndia via Wahga border but India cannot use Wahga border for transiting goodsto Afghanistan.

124. *Sufyan Yousuf:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the year-wisetotal quantity of sugar exported during the last five financial yearsalongwith the details thereof?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): The yearwise total quantity of sugar exported during the last five financial years is givenbelow:———————————————————————————————

YEAR QUANTITY (MT)——————————————————————————————

2008-09 -

2009-10 50

2010-11 -

2011-12 48,672

2012-13 1,064,215——————————————————————————————

TOTAL 1,112,937——————————————————————————————

The ECC of the Cabinet allowed export of a total quantity of 1.7 millionMT of sugar (0.1 million tons, 0.2 million tons, 0.2 million tons, 0.2 million tons,0.5million tons, 0.5 million tons in the months of January, May, October, November,December, 2012 and September, 2013 respectively).

State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has been mandated by ECC of the Cabinetto monitor the export of sugar. Accordingly, SBP has devised a procedure toensure that the export is made within total approved quantity.

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125. *Sufyan Yousuf:

Will the Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination be pleased to statethe steps being taken by the Government to develop Squash at parwith the international standards?

Minister for Inter Provincial Coordination (Mr. Riaz HussainPirzada): Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) is affiliated with Pakistan SportsBoard for promotion and development of Squash in the country. However theFederal Government is providing all possible help and assistance to PSF. TheFederal Government has provided the following assistance to PSF:—

a. Annual grants are meant for holding mandatory annual championshipsas well as day to day expenses of the Federations.

b. Special Grants are released for participation of Pakistani Sportsteams in International Tournaments at home and abroad.

The statement of grants released during the last five years is appendedbelow:———————————————————————————————

Year Annual Special Under TotalGrant Grant President/ (Rs)(Rs) (Rs.) PM

Directive(Rs.)

——————————————————————————————2008-09 1,378,080 300,000 2,000,000 3,678,0802009-10 2,000,000 640,000 — 2,640,0002010-11 2,200,000 1,000.000 — 3,200,0002011-12 2,376,000 400,000 — 2,776,0002012-13 2,571,040 2,150,000 — 4,721,040

——————————————————————————————10,525,120 44,90,000 2,000,000 170,15,120

——————————————————————————————

Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) main areas of concentration includesholding of tournaments in the country sending Pakistani players for overseas events,participation of Pakistan team in major tournaments, Asian and World events,holding of regular training camps and development of squash at grass root level.

38

PERFORMANCE AT INTERNATIONAL EVENTS.

PSF is mainly focused at revival of international squash in Pakistan throughseeking high priced PSA tournaments with participation of foreign players. PSFhave very successfully organized the Asian Individual Squash Championship atIslamabad in 2013 in which players from Hong Kong, Malaysia China, Iran, Iraq,Sri Lanka, Kuwait and Pakistan participated. Mr. Aamir Atlas won Gold Medalafter a long period of 15 years. Pakistani players also showed excellentperformance in major events by winning Gold Medal in Asian Junior TeamChampionship, 2013 held at Korea. Mr. Bukhari won Gold Medal in Asian JuniorIndividual Championship, 2013 at Jordon. Mr Bukhari won Gold Medal in AsianJunior Individual Championship, 2013 at Jordon.

REVIVAL OF INTERNATIONAL SQUASH

Owing to the law and order situation, in the country the international playersare not frequently coming to Pakistan and the international body has allowed PSFto hold only four (04) PSA tournaments every year. This is one- of the hindrancefor our players to excel in the game. However, to address the issue, PSF hasaccelerated its efforts through. World Squash Federation and the ProfessionalSquash Association. for bringing. international Squash back to the country. In thelast week of January, 2014 the Senior Vice President, PSF, AVM Syed RaziNawab along with squash legend Mr. Qamar Zaman met PSA Board of Directorsin Queen’s Club London to revive international squash in Pakistan.

SPONSORSHIP FOR PLAYERS

PSF has been supporting senior players alongwith grooming the juniorboys and girls by providing them in country and overseas tournaments. This isaimed at improving their world ranking by playing maximum events. During theyear 2013, our players participated in 35 tournaments in Pakistan and abroad outof which they won 07 tournaments and stood runner up in four (04) PSA events.As a result, most of our players improved their world ranking.

@126. *Ms Surriya Jatoi:

Will the Minister for Textile Industry be pleased to state:——————————————————————————————

@Transferred from Commerce Division.

39

(a) whether it is a fact that the exports of textile products havedecreased during the current year; if so, the reasons thereof;and

(b) the steps being taken by the Government to increase the saidexports?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) It is nota fact that textile exports have decreased during current financial year. During firstsix months of current financial year 2013-14, i.e. July-December 2013, the textileexports were $7.012 billion compared to $6.472 billion in corresponding periodof last financial year. In terms of percentage, textile exports witnessed a growth of8.36%. Complete details of textile exports, subsector wise, for the said period isplaced as Annexure-I.

(b) The Textiles Policy 2009-14 envisages enhancement of exportperformance of textile industry to $25 billion over a period of five years, to beachieved through a set of immediate short term support measures and medium& long term initiatives aimed at infrastructure and skills development.

The Ministry of Textile Industry has issued the following Orders in additionto the SRO issued by the Federal Board of Revenue for duty free import oftextiles machinery to facilitate exports textiles sector:—

1. Drawback of Local Taxes and Levies (DLTL) Order, 2009

2. Export Finance Mark-up Rate Facility (EFS) Order, 2009

3. Markup Rate Support for Textile Sector Order, 2009

4. Reimbursement of EOBI Contribution Order, 2009

5. Technology Up-gradation Fund Scheme Order 2010

6. Past Claims of R&D Support Scheme

7. PTA MonetizationRs. Billion

——————————————————————————————2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14

————————————————————————————————————————Funds released by 9.75 7.5 6.0 2.0 3.5Finance Division

————————————————————————————————————————

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It is pertinent to mention that Cabinet while approving the Textiles Policy2009-14 approved financing plan of Rs. 188.6 billion, however, during first fouryears of the Textiles Policy only Rs. 25.25 billion were released by the FinanceDivision. Brief on Schemes and disbursement procedure as per the NotificationOrder is attached as Annexure-A.

During current financial year Rs. 3.5 billion have been provided by theFinance Division so far against the approved financing plan of Rs. 35 billion out ofwhich Rs. 1.3 billion has been disbursed by the State Bank of Pakistan in Drawbackof Local Taxes and Levies Scheme. Further, Rs. 1.7 billion are being allocated tothe Export Finance Support Scheme and Rs. 0.35 billion for Mark-up SupportScheme subject to the approval of the Minister In-charge for Ministry of TextileIndustry.


127. *Ms Surriya Jatoi:


(a) the names of countries to which tobacco was exported duringthe year 2013-14; and

(b) the country wise foreign exchange earned therefrom?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) Tobaccowas exported to 23 different countries during the current financial year (from 1stJuly 2013 to 25th Feb’2014). The exports were in the shape of tobacco as wellas cigarettes. The list of these countries is placed at Annex-A.

(b) A total amount of US$ 12.82 million was earned from the export oftobacco. The country-wise detail of foreign exchange earned, is placed atAnnex-A.

42

128. *Nighat Parveen Mir:

Will the Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination be pleased to statethe steps taken by the Ministry to search and train new talent forCricket in the country?

Minister for Inter Provincial Coordination (Mr. Riaz HussainPirzada): Following steps have been taken by PCB to search and train new talentfor Cricket in the country:

• Holding of Annual U-16 Talent Hunt Cricket program in 50 districtsacross the country since 2007-2008 to unearth new talent and furthergrooming through regional and national cricket academy.

• Province-wise list of districts visited each year are as under:

SINDH:

Hyderabad, Karachi, Benazirabad (Nawabshah), Larkana and Sukkar.

KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA:

Swabi, Abbottabad, D. I. Khan, Kohat, Mansehra, Mardan, Peshawar,Bannu and Swat.

BALOCHISTAN:

Naushki, Quetta, Loralai, Sibi, Jaffarabad, Hub, Turbat, Chaman andNaseerabad.

PUNJAB:

Gujrat, Mirpur (AJK), Islamabad, Attock, Rawalpindi, Jhelum,Faisalabad, Kasur, Sargodha, Sheikhupura, Sialkot, Gujranwala, Lahore(3 activities), Layyah, Rahim Yar Khan, Bahawalpur, Rajanpur, Okara, Multan,Chichawatni, Sahiwal, D. G. Khan and Burewala.

• For players belonging to FATA, 4 activities are conducted inPeshawar.

43

• Pre-tournament camps for U-16 players at Regions on annual basis.

• Regional U-16 Tournament on annual basis.

• 4 Weeks Advance Coaching Program at National Cricket Academyfor 24 Top performers during U-16 Regional Teams Tournamentson annual basis.

• Holding of Regional U-19 Academies on annual basis.

• 4 Weeks High Performance Camp for Emerging Players at NationalCricket Academy on annual basis.

• Specialized Coaching Camps at National Cricket Academy for thedevelopment of Domestic players.

• U-19 Fast Track Coaching Program for the enrichment of youngplayers at National Cricket Academy every year.

The PCB also runs the following Talent Hunt Programmesthroughout the country.

PCB U-16 Program

The PCB runs a Talent Hunt Program in all major cities in order to evaluatethe talent available throughout the country. Players short listed in this program arethen given advanced coaching at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore. Manyof the players selected through this program have represented the country at variouslevels.

PCB U-19 Program

PCB regularly holds advanced coaching programs for those players whodistinguish themselves with their performance in the District and regional U-19tournaments.

Regional U-16 Cricket

PCB conducts annual tournaments at the District and Regional level forU-19 Cricketers which allows these players an opportunity to make their markand get noticed by National Selectors.

44

From these programs, the following players have risen to be selected toplay for Pakistan in the last 5, years:

1. Umar Akmal2. Junaid Khan3. Asad Shafiq4. Sarfaraz Ahmed5. Azhar Ali6. Rahat Ali7. Wahab Riaz8. Umar Amin9. Hammad Azam

10. Ehsan Adil11. Raza Hasan

129. *Shaikh Rohale Asghar:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the year-wisetotal value/quantity of gold exported during the last five years?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): Theyear-wise total value/quantity of Gold Jewellery exported during the last five yearsis given below:———————————————————————————————

Year Quantity Value (000 US$)(Matric ton)

——————————————————————————————2008-09 1.3 37,0942009-10 4.7 141,3222010-11 2.8 109,6552011-12 3.2 171,6812012-13 6.7 346,255

——————————————————————————————Source: PBS

130. *Shaikh Rohale Asghar:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the year-wisetotal value of quantity of gold imported during the last five years?

45

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): The year-wise total value/quantity of gold imported during the last five year is as follows:——————————————————————————————

Year Quantity Value inin KG Million US$

——————————————————————————————2008-09 1279 37.12009-10 4749 138.72010-11 2834 109.62011-12 3267 171.72012-13 6745 346.3

——————————————————————————————Source: Federal Bureau of Statistics

131. *Belum Hasnain:


(a) whether it is a fact that 60% cement is being exported toTajikistan;

(b) if so, the steps being taken to increase the bilateral trade withthe said country and benefits to be achieved therefrom?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) It isincorrect that 60% cement is being exported to Tajikistan. The factual position isthat 3300 tons cement was exported to Tajikistan, which constitutes 0.036% ofthe total cement exports.

(b) The Government is committed to enhance trade relations with CentralAsian States including Tajikistan. Bilateral trade between the Pakistan and Tajikistanhas increased from US$ 2.128 million in 2011-12 to US$ 7.342 million in 2012-13. Pakistan’s exports have increased from US$ 1.958 million to US$ 6.893million and imports from Tajikistan have also increased from US$ 0.170 million toUS$ 0.449 million in the same period. The trade balance has remained in favor ofPakistan through this period.

In order to increase bilateral, Pakistan proposed Tajikistan to startnegotiations on bilateral Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA). The draft PTA textwas sent to Tajikistan. However, later it was intimated that due to their commitments

46

with other trading blocs, they deem individual PTA with Pakistan as premature.However, Tajikistan is being engaged on other forums such Joint EconomicCommission to enhance bilateral trade.

132. *Sajid Ahmed:

Will the Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination be pleased to statethe steps being taken by the Government against monopoly of Indiain International Cricket Council?

Minister for Inter Provincial Coordination (Mr. Riaz HussainPirzada): As per claim by Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) close to80% of the total revenue in international cricket is derived from the Indian marketand hence they should have a bigger share in ICC revenues.

In addition to this claim, India (BCCI), Australia (CA) and England (ECB)have presented a Position Paper in which these 3 countries would have a largersay in the governance of ICC.

The PCB now remains the only cricket board which has not given itsassent to this proposal whereas 9 other Full Members have already confirmedtheir agreement to this proposal.

Whereas the proposals in which India, Australia and England have largersay in governance as well as finances has already been approved with majority byICC members.

PCB still continues to discuss with various stakeholders to protect theinterest of Pakistan’s cricket.

133. *Shazia Mari:


(a) whether it is a fact that three thousand Pakistanis were arrestedin Jeddah during the year 2013-14; if so, reasons thereof; and

(b) the steps taken by the Government in this regard?

47

Minister for Foreign Affairs: (a) The input given below is based oninformation provided by our Consulate General in Jeddah:

Consul General, Consulate General of Pakistan, Jeddah visited JeddahDeportation Centre (Tarheel) on Thursday 06 February 2014. During the visit, hemet Jail authorities as well as our Pakistani detainees in different barracks. Followingare details about the number of detainees:——————————————————————————————

Sector——————————————————————————————

A B C D E——————————————————————————————

103 2238 1626 384 41——————————————————————————————

The reason for detention of these Pakistanis is that their residence status isillegal. The increased number of detainees is due to the fact that they are beingbrought to Jeddah from all around the Kingdom for their departure from JeddahAirport.

(b) Once the detainees are brought to Tahreel due to illegal stay, thefollowing procedure is undertaken to prepare their travel documents and completethe travel formalities.

i. Allocation of Detention No;

ii. Investigation (of any alleged crime);

iii. Transfer of case to Travel Department (if cleared by the InvestigationTeam);

iv. Arrangement of Tickets;

v. Travel/Departure.

The System in place is:

• Travel Department hands over pictures to the Consulate aftercompletion of investigation.

48

• The picture contains the Prisoner number, name and Sector but noBarrack number (There are 80 barracks in each Sector).

• The Consulate has established a permanent office at Tarheel, whichis staffed by 4-5 persons.

• After receiving the pictures, the Consulate officials visit each Barrackto identify a detainee and then get his form filled up along with theirfingerprints for preparation of travel document.

• These forms are sent to the Consulate where Emergency Passportsare prepared within 24-48 hours.

• In case, the detainee has a copy of his CNIC or number of CNIC,the case is sent to NADRA Office, Jeddah for confirmation within24 hours.

• The Consulate hands over travel documents to Travel Departmentat Tarheel which then plans travel of detainees as per availability/seats in the Saudi Airlines.

The Consulate is working overtime and on weekends to facilitate thedetainees, especially those who are under distress.

134. *Junaid Akbar:


(a) whether it is a fact that an agreement has been signed betweenIran and Pakistan on barter trade;

(b) if so, the details thereof?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) NoAgreement has been signed between Iran and Pakistan on barter trade. However,an Agreement/Commercial Contract was signed between PASSCO and GTC,Iran on 21st November, 2012 in Islamabad for export of one million tons ofPakistani wheat to Iran.

49

(b) The Iranian side, in the first phase, requested for supply of 30,000MT wheat. The price of wheat was to be offset by payment from NationalTransmission and Dispatch Company (NTDC) for import of electricity from Iran.The Government of Iran had also officially concurred with the proposal of offsettingwheat export proceeds and asked that this amount be offset against supply ofwheat from Government sector (PASSCO) and other commodities to be suppliedby the private sector to Iran.

PASSCO made all necessary logistics arrangements for export of 30,000 MT Wheat to Iran. Meanwhile, Ministry of National Food Security & Researchsent another summary to ECC on 23rd July, 2013 for re-confirmation of the decisionto export of 30,000 MT Wheat to Iran by PASSCO, as it was an internationalcommitment. ECC of the Cabinet vide its decision dated 30th July, 2013 allowedexport of 30,000 MT Wheat to Iran. After receipt of the decision, PASSCOcontacted Government Trading Company (GTC), Iran for conveying finaltransportation arrangement, but the GTC Iran through their email dated 6thAugust, 2013 informed that they had already cancelled the contract on16th July, 2013.

135. *Junaid Akbar:


(a) whether it is a fact that Pakistan is lagging behind in theInternational Food Safety Standards;

(b) whether it is also a fact that the exports of seafood have notbeen made to the member countries of the European Unionduring the period from 2007 till date;

(c) if the answers to part (a) and (b) above are in the affirmative,the reasons thereof; and

(d) the steps being taken in this regard?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) Pakistanexports food items as per food safety standards required by the importing countries.However, the Government in collaboration with the stakeholders is in process toimprove the level of compliance to food safety standards.

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(b) The European Union (EU) imposed ban on the import of seafoodfrom Pakistan in 2007. However, EU has allowed exports from the two fisheriesunits of Pakistan in 2013 selected by the Marine Fisheries Department (MFD).

(c) In January 2007, a delegation of Food and Veterinary Office (FVO)of European Union visited Pakistan to inspect the facilities and decided to de-listthe fisheries establishments with effect from 12-04-2007. The de-listing of Pakistanifisheries establishment was undertaken after a Commission’s inspection visit foundfailure of systemic enforcement and serious deficiencies in the sanitary quality ofthe fish.

(d) The Government of Pakistan has taken following steps to complywith the importing countries’ food safety standard:

i. Following measures have been taken to comply with EconomicCommission’s Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards (SPS):—

• Modernization of laboratory services of MFD.

• MFD Microbiology and Chemical Labs have beeninternationally accredited

• Improvement of fishing vessels/hygiene practices, improvementof landing/auction sites, improvement of fish processing plants,strengthening of fishery products production chain supervisionand harmonization of standards.

• Four boats modified as modular boats and around 200fishermen’s boats have been modified.

ii. Food Irradiation Facility at Lahore and Hot Water Treatment Plantin Karachi have been established by Pakistan HorticultureDevelopment & Export Company in collaboration of the stakeholdersfor treatment of the horticultural products.

iii. Vapor Heat Treatment Plant has also been imported from Japan forprocessing of mangoes to be exported to Japan.

iv. Ministry of National Food Security & Research is in process ofestablishing National Food Safety, Animal and Plant Health RegulatoryAuthority.

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136. *Shaista Pervaiz:

Will the Minister for Textile Industry be pleased to state:

(a) the time by which the additional energy requirements of thetextile sector will be met in order to take benefits from GSPPlus scheme from European Union; and

(b) the mechanism devised to comply with the conditionalities ofsaid scheme?

Transferred to Water and Power Division for answer on Next Rota Day.

137. *Muhammad Jamal Ud Din:

Will the Minister for States and Frontier Regions be pleased to referUn-Starred Question No. 38 replied on 29 January, 2014 and state:

(a) whether it is a fact that the process of rehabilitation andrepatriation of effectees of operation Rahi-e-Nijat is very slow;if so, the reasons thereof;

(b) the time by which the said process will be completed; and

(c) the steps taken by the Government to protect the life and propertyof those effectees who have been rehabilitated so far?

Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Lt. Gen. (Retd.) AbdulQadir Baloch): (a) The repatriation of Displaced Persons (DPs) is contigentupon the clearance of areas by the Law Enforcing Agencies (LEAs). The DPs ofthe cleared areas who opted for voluntary return have already been repatriated byFATA Disaster Management Authority (FDMA) whereas those who opted tostay back cannot be forced to return as they are citizens of Pakistan and can liveanywhere in the country at their own will. Delay in the repatriation of DPs belongingto the areas which are not yet stable is due to non clearance of the areas by LEAs.Secondly, return package @ Rs. 25,000/= per family has not yet been funded byGovernment of Pakistan so far.

(b) As and when the areas are cleared and denotified as free of conflict,repatriation will be started immediately subject to availability of resources.

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(c) The Law Enforcing Agencies (LEAs) are still deployed in these areasand are taking all possible steps to protect the life and property of the repatriatedfamilies in their villages. No incident of serious nature has happened in these areasup to now.

138. *Sher Akbar Khan:


(a) the trade deficit of the country during the period from June,2003 to June 2013 alongwith the reasons thereof;

(b) the steps being taken by the Government to reduce the saiddeficit?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) Thetrade deficit of the country during the period from June, 2003 to June 2013 is asunder:

Million US$——————————————————————————————

Years Exports Imports Balance of trade/trade deficit

——————————————————————————————2002-03 11160 12220 10602003-04 12313 15592 32792004-05 14391 20598 62072005-06 16451 28581 121302006-07 16976 30504 135642007-08 19052 39966 209142008-09 17688 34822 171342009-10 19290 34710 154202010-11 24810 40414 156042011-12 23624 44912 212882012-13 24460 44950 20490

——————————————————————————————Source: PBS

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The main reason for the trade deficit during the said period was increasein import of petroleum products, food items and machinery which form the bulk ofPakistan’s imports. The import statistics of last five years are Annexed.

(b) The following incentives have been announced by the CommerceDivision in Strategic Trade Policy Framework (STPF) 2012-15 to improve exportsand to have favorable balance of trade as well as balance of payment:—

(i) Mark-up support of 2% on prevailing Long Term Financing Facility(LTFF) for future import/purchase of machinery has been announcedto encourace fresh investments in export oriented industries in a tougheconomic environment, for the manufacturers cum exporters of theselected sectors (i.e Leather, Engineering, Horticulture, ProcessedFood, Marble & Granite, Sports Goods and Computer relatedservices) to increase their products.





54







ISLAMABAD: KARAMAT HUSSAIN NIAZI,The 2nd March, 2014. Secretary.

PCPPI—309(14) NA—2-3-2014—700.

1

(9th Session)

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SECRETARIAT

————

“UNSTARRED QUESTIONS AND THEIR REPLIES”

For Monday, the 3rd March, 2014

(Originally Unstarred Question Nos. 24, 35, 39, 40, 41, 133, 137, 138, 140,144, 145, 150 and 151 were set down for answer during the 8th Session)

24. Muhammad Muzammil Qureshi:


(a) whether it is a fact that officers on deputation in TradingCorporation of Pakistan during the last five years have beenrepatriated to their parent departments;

(b) if not, the reasons alongwith names and designations?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) Duringthe last five years to-date 32 (thirty two) officers were posted on deputation inTCP. Out of which, 21 (twenty one) officers have been repatriated, including 02(two) retired. 11 (eleven) officers are still working on deputation in TCP.

The list of officers repatriated to their parent departments is placed atAnnex-I.

(b) The details of officers still working on deputation basis in TCP is placedat Annex-II.

(Annexures has been placed in the National Assembly Library)

35. Shahjahan Baloch:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the name of thecountry for which Pakistan voted during the Expo-2020 held inNovember, 2013?

2

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): The TurkishGovernment requested Pakistan in May 2011 for support to its candidature forhosting World Expo-2020 in Izmir. Given our excellent bilateral relations, the thengovernment decided to support the Turkish bid. In April 2012, the government ofanother brotherly country UAE also requested Pakistan for support of itscandidature. As Pakistan was already committed to support the Turkish bid, thevote was cast accordingly in the first round of the ballot. Since Turkey could notgather enough support and opted to quit after the first round, Pakistan subsequentlysupported UAE’s bid for Dubai in the second and final rounds of the ballot.

39. Muhammad Jamal Ud Din:

Will the Minister for States and Frontier Regions be pleased to statewhether it is a fact that the Masood Tribes cannot go to Wana viaTank; if so, the alternate route provided to them for going to Wana;if not, the reasons thereof?

Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Lt. Gen. (Retd.) AbdulQadir Baloch): Yes, the Mehsud tribes are not allowed to go Wana via Tank.However, in case of emergency, they are allowed to go to Wana via Gomal ZamDam route after consultation with the Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) underproper Rehadaris, presently no other route leads to Wana from Tank expect Tank-Gomal Zam Dam road.

The Operation Rah-e-Nijat was launched against Militants in Mehsuddominated areas of Sarwekai and Ladha Sub-Division of South Waziristan Agencyby the Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) in October, 2009. As a result of which,all the Mehsud Tribes migrated to Wana Sub-Division, Tank, D.I. Khan and othersparts of the Country. Around 2500 Mehsud Displaced families shifted to Wanaduring the year 2009. The miscreant’s increased their unlawful activities in Wanaat the and 2012 in the form of IED/ bomb blasts, rocket & suicide attacks whichcreated resentment in Ahmedzai Wazir tribe. A 120-Member Wana PeaceCommittee including prominent Elders / Ulemas of Ahmedzai Wazir unanimouslydecided to expel Mehsud Displaced Persons (DPs) from Wana Sub-Division. Asa result of Jirga, decision, the Mehsud Displaced persons started migration fromWana area, The Political Administration of South Waziristan Agency carried outproper registration of those Displaced Families, whereby more than 1100 familieswere registered. All these families were provided with food packages and Non -Food Items kits.

3

It is also pertinent to mention here that LEAs & FATA Secretariat videletter dated 21.08.2013 also reported that Mehsud are entering into closed areasadjacent to Wana Sub-Division and Wana Gomal Zam road on the Rehdaris ofWana by using unprotected routes, which is causing unnecessary security hazardsfor the security forces already stationed over there.

Keeping in view the demand of Ahmedzai Wazirs, request of LEAs andseries of offences of miscreant’s which took place in Wana proper as well as onGomal Zam Dam road, it was decided to stop issue of Rehdaris to Mehsudtribesmen to enter into Wana area so as to avoid any untoward incident in WanaSub-Division and illegal entry into closed areas.

40. Dr. Ramesh Kumar Vankwani:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the names of thesenior officers and members of Pakistan Horticulture Developmentand Export Board at present alongwith their pay and privileges?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): The Namesof senior officers of Pakistan Horticulture Development and Export Company andtheir pay/privileges

4

The Names of Mumbers of Pakistan Horticulture Development andExport Company Board and their pay/privileges

41. Dr. Ramesh Kumar Vankwani:

Will the Minister for States and Frontier Regions be pleased to referto Un-Starred Question No.161 replied on 6-12-2013 and to state:

(a) the total cost incurred on provision of non food items kitsalongwith details thereof; and

(b) the name of authority who made payment alongwith head-wisedetails thereof?

Reply not received.

133. Lal Chand:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state the totalofficial visits made by the Prime Minister abroad since June, 2013till date alongwith the total expenditures incurred thereupon?

Minister for Foreign Affairs: The official visits made by the PrimeMinister is enclosed as Annex- “A”.

5

Ann

ex-A

6

137. Nighat Parveen Mir:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the year-wisetotal number of new and used computers/lap-tops imported in thecountry during the last five years alongwith the details thereof,separately?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): Year-wisetotal number of new and used computer/lap-tops imported in the country duringthe last five years alongwith the details may be seen at Annex-I.




the quantity-wise leather garments exported during the last fiveyears till date alongwith the names of the countries thereof?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): The quantity-wise leather garments exported during the last five years are as under:-

The country-wise details are place at Annex-A


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(a) whether it is a fact that some alternative arrangement has beenmade for the students of Ludda Sam College in Masood Area,Makin Higher Secondary School and other High Schools in SouthWaziristan which were damaged due to Operation Rah-e-Nijat;

(b) if so, the present status; if not, the reasons thereof?

Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Lt. Gen. (Retd.) AbdulQadir Baloch): (a) Yes. Keeping in view the pressing demand of the students &prevalent law & order situation in the area, alternate arrangements of eveningclasses for the students of Government Degree College Laddah and Sam havebeen made in Zam Public School Tank. However, due to non availability of anyvacant building in the opened area in South Waziristan Agency, the remainingeducational institutions including Higher Secondary School Makin and others couldnot be opened so far, which will be opened when normal situation is restored inthe area concerned.

(b) Out of 395 non functional schools in Mehsud area in South WaziristanAgency, 60 schools have been made functional after restoration of peace in openarea. The rest of the schools & colleges will be made functional immediately asand when the area is declared cleared.

144. Sahibzada Muhammad Yaqub:

Will the Minister for Textile Industry be pleased to state:

(a) the district-wise total number of knitwear exporting unitsworking in the country at present;

(b) the increase/decrease made in number of the said units since2005 till date; and

(c) the steps being taken by the Government to facilitate thatindustry and enhance its exports?

Reply not received.

8

145. Sher Akbar Khan:


(a) the steps being taken by the Government for Human ResourceDevelopment in the country; and

(b) the year-wise amount allocated for the said purpose during thelast three years alongwith the head-wise utilization thereof?

Transferred to Education, Trainings and Standards in Higher EducationDivision for answer on Next Rota Day.

150. Ghalib Khan:


(a) the amount of stipends being given to students of FATA at Collegeand University levels at present; and

(b) whether there is any proposal under consideration of theGovernment to increase the amount of the said stipends, if so,when it will be implemented alongwith the details thereof?

Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Lt. Gen. (Retd.) AbdulQadir Baloch): (a)

/FATA students studying at inter/degree and postgraduate

level are being awarded stipend at the following rates:

—————————————————————————————— Category Rate per annum——————————————————————————————(i) Inter/degree Rs.5000/- per student/

(All students) per annum

(ii) Postgraduate Rs.6000/- per student/(All students) per annum

(iii) Medical/Dental Rs.12000/- per student/Colleges per annum(All students)

——————————————————————————————

9

(b) The amount has been increased with effect from the current financialyear with the approval of the Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as follows:——————————————————————————————Category Previous Revised

Rate Rate——————————————————————————————Inter/degree Rs.2450/- Rs.5000/-

Postgraduate Rs.3050/- Rs.6000/-——————————————————————————————

It may be noted here that the stipend as per revised rates is being paidwith effect from financial year 2013-2014.

151. Ghalib Khan:


(a) the total number of Higher Secondary Schools, Inter and DegreeColleges in the South Waziristan Agency separately at present;and

(b) the total number of students enrolled/studying in the abovementioned Schools and Colleges separately at present?

Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Lt. Gen. (Retd.) AbdulQadir Baloch): (a) There are 02 Higher Secondary Schools and 04 DegreeColleges (3 Male+1 Female) in South Waziristan Agency as detailed below:-

a. (i) Government Higher Secondary School Laddah Tehsil Laddah.

(ii) Government Higher Secondary School Shahoor Tehsil Sarwakai.

b. (i) Government Degree College for Girls at Wana Tehsil Wana.

(ii) Government Degree College for Boys Wana Tehsil Wana.

(iii) Government Degree College for Boys Sam Tehsil Laddah.

(iv) Government Degree College for Boys Laddah Tehsil Laddah.

10

(b) At present there are 325 students enrolled in the two HigherSecondary Schools, whereas 2065 students have been enrolled in the existingDegree Colleges, out of which 1761 students are enrolled in three male DegreeColleges and 304 students are enrolled in one female Degree College in SouthWaziristan Agency.

110. Dr. Arif Alvi:


(a) the total number of Overseas Pakistanis at present alongwiththe region/country-wise details thereof;

(b) the total number of Pakistanis to whom employments wereprovided by the Overseas Employment Corporation during theyear 2012-13 till date; and

(c) the total amount of budget allocated for the said corporationduring the last three years till date?

Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment (Pir Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashidi) : (a) At present total numberof overseas Pakistanis is 7.4 million. Region/country-wise detail is annexed.

(b) Overseas Employment Corporation provided employment to 2189Pakistanis during 2012-13.

(c) Overseas Employment Corporation is self-financed Organization andno budget has been allocated by the Federal Government during

last three years.


111. Parveen Masood Bhatti:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state the salaryalongwith the perks and privileges admissible to Pakistaniambassadors posted abroad at present alongwith the details thereof?

Minister for Foreign Affairs: Pakistan has 15, “X” Category, 25 “Y”Category and 48 “Z” Category Missions abroad. These Missions are categorized

11

as X, Y and Z, based on our political, economic, commercial and defense relationswith those countries and the size of Pakistani community living over there.

Ambassadors in BS-22 are generally appointed in X Category, BS-21 toY Category and BS-20 to Z Category Missions. They draw pay and allowancesaccording to their Pay Scale i.e. 22 or 21 or 20 as admissible under the rules.Other Perks include free passage for self and family, subsidy for one cook, freefurnished accommodation with 75% of utility charges, official vehicle with driverand free medical facilities for self and family.

Pakistan Abroad are categorized as X, Y, Z on the basis of the host countryimportance measured in term of over all political, economic and commercial ties,Defense collaboration, size of Pakistani Community, as well as the role andsignificance of the country at the regional and Global level.

Category “X” Mission:

Grade-22 officers are posted in the Category-X Mission as Ambassadors.They are entitled to basic pay scale and foreign allowance according to the PayScale as admissible under the rules. A lump sum equal to half’s moths pay if marriedand accompanied by family, otherwise equal to 1/4 of pay will be paid in Pakrupees as transfer grant. They are given subsidy for two cook and one domesticservant. Free passage for self with such incidental charges as admissible under therules from Islamabad to the Mission on the approved route and for servants by thecheapest route on the approved route is also granted. The Ambassadors are alsopaid a packing, crating and transportation charges of personal effects formIslamabad to the Mission. Free furnished accommodation with 75% of all utilitycharges is provided along with official car for official/private use. They are entitledto free medical facility for the self and members of the family in accordance withthe Central Services (Medial Attended) rules as amended from time to time.

Category “Y” Mission:

Grade-21 officers are posted in the Category-X Mission as Ambassadors.They are entitled to basic pay scale and foreign allowance according to the PayScale as admissible under the rules. A lump sum equal to half’s moths pay if marriedand accompanied by family, otherwise equal to 1/4 of pay will be paid in Pakrupees as transfer grant. They are given subsidy for one cook and one domesticservant. Free passage for self with such incidental charges as admissible under therules from Islamabad to the Mission on the approved route and for servants by the

12

cheapest route on the approved route is also granted. The Ambassadors are alsopaid a packing, crating and transportation charges of personal effects formIslamabad to the Mission. Free furnished accommodation with 75% of all utilitycharges is provided along with official car for official/ private use. They are entitledto free medical facility for the self and members of the family in accordance withthe Central Services (Medial Attended) rules as amended from time to time.

Category “Z” Mission:

Grade-20 officers are posted in the Category-X Mission as Ambassadors.They are entitled to basic pay scale and foreign allowance according to the PayScale as admissible under the rules. A lump sum equal to half’s moths pay if marriedand accompanied by family, otherwise equal to 1/4 of pay will be paid in Pakrupees as transfer grant. They are given subsidy for one cook and one domesticservant. Free passage for self with such incidental charges as admissible under therules from Islamabad to the Mission on the approved route and for servants by thecheapest route on the approved route is also granted. The Ambassadors are alsopaid a packing, crating and transportation charges of personal effects formIslamabad to the Mission. Free furnished accommodation with 75% of all utilitycharges is provided along with official car for official/private use. They are entitledto free medical facility for the self and members of the family in accordance withthe Central Services (Medial Attended) rules as amended from time to time.

3. All these perk and privileges are according to the existing rules.

112. Parveen Masood Bhatti:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the city wise totalnumber of firms allowed to export/import ammunition at present?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): The totalnumber of firms allowed by Ministry of Commerce to import

Non-Prohibited Bore weapon are 475. The city wise list of firms is placedat Annex-A.


13

113. Syed Asif Hasnain:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the country-wisemonthly quantity of fish and meat being exported from Pakistan atpresent?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): Country-wise yearly data regarding export of fish and meat is annexed. Monthly data isbeing collected from Federal Bureau of Statistics (FBS) and will be submittedlater.


114. Syed Asif Hasnain:

Will the Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment be pleased to state the province wise total number ofpersons sent abroad on employment visas by the Ministry during theperiod from 1-1-2008 to 30-6-2012?

Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment (Pir Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashidi) : Total number of personssent abroad for the purpose of employment by the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis& Human Resource Development during the period from 01-01-2008 to 30-06-2012 is 1,983,205. Province-wise breakup is as under:

1. Punjab 1,003,128

2. Sindh 157,801

3. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 565,030

4. Balochistan 21,938

5. Azad Kashmir 139,517

6. Gilgit Baltistan. 2,455

7. FATA. 91,774

14

115. Sheikh Salahuddin:

Will the Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment be pleased to refer to Un-Starred Question No.79 repliedon 29-01-2014 and to state:

(a) the names, father names, grades and date of initial appointmentsof teaching and non-teaching staff working in Folks GrammarSchool, Serai Naurang, KPK at present; and

(b) the details of teaching and non-teaching staff employed in FolkGrammar School, Amangarh, KPK during the period from 1-7-2011 to 31-12-2011?

Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment (Pir Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashidi) : (a) The detail of names,father names, grades and date of initial appointment of teaching and non-teachingstaff working in Folks Grammar School, Serai Naurang, KPK at present is attachedat Annex-I.

(b) The details of teaching and non-teaching staff employed in FolkGrammar School Amangarh, KPK during the period from 01.07.2011 to31.12.2011 in attached at Annex-II.


116. Mrs. Shahida Rehmani:


(a) the total profit earned by the State Life Insurance Corporationduring the last three years till date;

(b) whether it is a fact that the said corporation is being privatized;if so, the reasons thereof;

(c) if not, the steps being taken to improve the said corporation?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): (a) Totalprofit earned by State Life Insurance Corporation of Pakistan during the last threeyears till date is as under;

15

Net profit during last 3 years Rs. In’000'

2010-Audited and approved 406,878



The account for the year 2013 are not yet finalized / audited.

(b) Yes. It is a fact that the said corporation is being considered forprivatization by the Cabinet Committee on Privatization. The Privatizationprogramme is modeled around the concept of Public Private Partnership (PPP) toharness the private sector’s capital and managerial potential with the strategic aimto enhance the value of GOP shareholding through modernization and up-gradationof PSEs by enhancing capital investments and meeting identified business benchmarks and outputs. The program also includes divestments through domestic andinternational capital markets to enhance the attractiveness and visibility of Pakistanas a favored investmentdestination besides mobilizing savings of households andinstitutional investors.

(c) Nil

117. Mrs. Shahida Rehmani:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the details oftrade agreement made with India during the year 2013-14?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): No tradeagreement was made with India during the year 2013-14.

118. Naeema Kishwar Khan:

Will the Minister for Overseas Pakistanis Human ResourcesDevelopment be pleased to state the total expenditures incurred onthe schemes in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from Workers Welfare Fundduring the period from 01-07-2012 to 31-12-2013 alongwith thenames of schemes thereof?

Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment (Pir Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashidi) : *The total expenditureincurred on the schemes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from Workers Welfare Fundduring the period from 01.07.2012 to 31.12.2013 is Rs.969.605 Millions. Thenames of schemes are as under:-

16

119. Khalida Mansoor:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the names of newtrade markets discovered by Pakistan during the period from 2008to 2013?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan):Diversification of export markets is one of the main planks of Strategic TradePolicy Framework 2012-13 (STPF). Certain initiatives have been taken to enhancePakistan’s exports including:

(i) Pakistan Indonesia Preferential Trade Agreement :

Preferential Trade Agreement with Indonesia was signed on 3rd February,2012 and operationalized w.e.f. 1st September, 2013.

17

(ii) Ministry of Commerce had been making efforts to increase exportsto other markets through various market access initiatives. These initiatives arelisted below:

(a) Autonomous Trade Preferences (ATPs) (2012-13)

(b) GSP Plus (2014- onwards)

(c) Pak-Turk PTA

(d) ECOTA

(a) The EU had announced duty free access to Pakistan on 75 productsto help its economy recover from losses as a result of floods in 2010 through apackage called Autonomous Trade Preferences (ATPs). The package requiredapproval of the WTO and the European Parliament. After the successful passagefrom both the forums the package took effect from 15th November, 2012 andwas available till 31st December, 2013.

(b) EU parliament had announced to grant GSP Plus status to Pakistanon 12th December, 2014. The Minister for Commerce visited various capitals ofEU to undertake intensive lobbying before voting in the EU Parliament’s Committeeon International Trade (INTA) and in the European Parliament to present the casefor Pakistan and respond to the objections raised by member states opposing themotion. As a result of the successful efforts of the Government of Pakistan, Pakistanreceived 408 votes in favour, while 102 opposed the motion. Pakistani productsare being accorded duty free access in EU w.e.f. 1st January, 2014.

(c) During the period of 2008-13 efforts were made to conclude Pak-Turkey PTA to take the bilateral trade volume above $ 2 billion. The 6th round ofPak-Turkey PTA negotiations was held on 22-23 December, 2013. The nextround of PTA negotiations is expected in first half of 2014.

(d) ECO Trade Agreement

In order to explore new markets for export of Pakistani products, theprocess of operationalization of ECO Trade Agreement (ECOTA) was started in2008. The first meeting of ECOTA Cooperation Council (implementation body)held in May 2008 in Turkey decided to implement the Agreement from 1st January,2009. The Contracting Parties also agreed to finalize their respective positive,

18

negative and sensitive lists by October 31, 2008. However, the decisions couldnot be implemented as Iran and Tajikistan could not submit their tariff concessionlists within the stipulated time. So far four meetings of the Cooperation Councilhave been held but the commitments made by Iran and Tajikistan have not yetbeen fulfilled.

120. Khalida Mansoor:


(a) the problems faced by the Pakistanis residing in UAE at present;and

(b) the steps taken by the Government to resolve the said problems?

Minister for Foreign Affairs: (a) Our Mission in Abu Dhabi hasinformed that;

There are around 1.2 million Pakistanis living in the United Arab Emirates.These include skilled, semi-skilled workers as well as a large majority of laborers. Themain problems faced by the Pakistani community in the UAE are summarized below:

i. Imposition of heavy fines by UAE Government on expired laborcards.

ii. Violation of Foreign Service Agreement by some UAE employersagainst Pakistani emigrants.

iii. Restrictions on change of employment visa in certain categories.

iv. Prolonged cases in local Labor courts.

v. Repatriation of Pakistanis from UAE on security grounds.

vi. Delays in preparation of Foreign Exchange Remittance Cards.

vii. Delays in processing of cases of family disputes referred to OPF.

viii. Charging of heavy fees from potential emigrants by overseasemployment promoters.

ix. No fixed level of minimum wages for Pakistani workers.

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(b) The Embassy of Pakistan Abu Dhabi and its Consulate General inDubai have been working actively to serve the interests of the Pakistani diasporain UAE. The Mission ensures that problems faced by Pakistanis in UAE areregularly highlighted and brought to the attention of the UAE Government as wellas relevant stakeholders in Pakistan.

Both Pakistan and UAE are presently negotiating on MoU in the field ofManpower that will lead to improvements in the working conditions of Pakistanisin UAE and ensure transparency and fairness in the recruitment processes.

The two sides have also agreed to appoint focal points to discuss theestablishment of a Joint Committee on Consular Affairs. These steps were takenat the recently held 11th Session of Pak-UAE Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC)in Islamabad (November 06-07, 2013).

Moreover, dedicated Community Welfare Wings in both the Missionsprovide consular assistance to all Pakistanis, particularly those detained in UAEjails. They maintain regular contact/liaison with UAE authorities e.g. Ministry orLabor, Interior etc. to discuss the cases of Pakistanis pending with these departmentsand pursue early release of detained Pakistanis.

121. Ms Surriya Jatoi:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state the names ofPakistanis imprisoned in India at present; alongwith the offencescommitted by the prisoners and punishment awarded to them;

Minister for Foreign Affairs: Pakistan and India has signed an“Agreement on Consular Access” on May 21, 2008, for exchange of list of bothsides prisoners on January 1st and July 1st each year.

As per lists of prisoners exchanged on 1st January 2014, India hasconfirmed presence of 396 Pakistani prisoners (265 civil & 131 fishermen)in Indian jails. However, as per our claim, there are 500 Pakistani prisonersdetained in Indian jails. We are taking up the matter of this discrepancy innumber with the Indian authorities through diplomatic channel.

As desired, names of Pakistani imprisoned in India at present; along withoffences committed by the prisoners and punishment awarded to them are attachedas Annex-A (Pakistan’s claim of 500 Pakistani prisoners detained in Indian jails) &Annex-B (India’s confirmation of 396 Pakistani prisoners detained in Indian jails).


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(a) the names, domicile, educational qualifications and place ofpresent posting alongwith date of posting of the ambassadorsposted abroad; and

(b) the procedure adopted for the selection of the said ambassadors?

Minister for Foreign Affairs : (a) Details of High Commissioners/Ambassadors posted/being posted are as under:

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Note: Tenure for career Ambassadors is generally three years. Tenure ofnon-career Ambassadors is two years, or as approved by the Government.

*Non-career/on contract Ambassador

(b) Following procedure is adopted for posting of Career Ambassadors:

The proposals are initiated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs keepingin view the following criteria:

- Experience/expertise in specific areas/regions.

- Seniority in the posting roster (stay at Headquarters) - Fitness/Merit(detailed examination of service record and ACRs)

- Previous postings abroad (by classification of stations)

- Personal preference

- The appointments are made with the approval of the Prime Minister.

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(a) the names of corporations working under the administrativecontrol of the Ministry at present alongwith the names ofDirectors of each Corporation thereof; and

(b) the names, educational qualifications and date of appointmentof the Directors of the said corporations during the last fiveyears?

Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment (Pir Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashidi) : (a) The Corporationworking under the administrative control of Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis &Human Resources Development is Overseas Employment Corporation. Namesof its Board of Directors are annexed. (Annexure-I).

(b) All Board of Directors of the Corporation remained during the lastfive years were ex-officio. Names of Directors are annexed (Annexure-II).



Will the Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment be pleased to state the steps being taken by theGovernment for the welfare of overseas Pakistanis in the countryand abroad?

Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment (Pir Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashidi) : The following steps arebeing taken by the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment and Overseas Pakistanis Foundation for the welfare of OverseasPakistanis:

1. Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis & Human Resource Development(OP & HRD) is taking up the issues of more employment opportunities at all levelsand even in bi-lateral, joint Ministerial Committee (JMC) meeting.

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2. The Ministry of OP & HRD have signed MOUs with differentcountries to provide more opportunities for employment abroad and safeguardingthe interests of Pakistanis emigrants.

3. Ministry of OP & HRD has 19 offices of Community Welfare Attaches(CWAS) in different countries with the following functions:-

• CWAs safeguard the interests of the Pakistani emigrants in the hostcountry through providing them assistance at the time of need.

• CWAs attend complaints of the Pakistani emigrants at PakistaniMissions abroad and take remedial steps to redress their complaints.

• CWAs promote overseas employment for Pakistani manpower inthe countries of their accreditation.

• CWAs met with Pakistani workers to ascertain their problems

• CWAs handle cases of illegal emigrants and suggest measures tocurb it.

• CWAs help overseas Pakistanis to dispatch their dead bodies.

• CWAs identify the new skills in demands in the countries of theirpostings so that more Pakistanis could be employed.

• CWAs provide assistance to Overseas Employment Promoters(OEPs) and OEC to find new opportunities for Pakistanis emigrants.

• Call on the major employers to find opportunities for the Pakistaniworkers.

The following steps are being taken by Overseas Pakistanis Foundation(OPF) for the welfare of Overseas Pakistanis:-

(1) OPF has established 25 Educational Institutions including 2 Collegesand 23 schools.

(2) OPF has launched following 12 Housing Schemes , 05 schemes atPunjab, 2 schemes in Sindh, 01 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 01 inBalochistan, 02 in Islamabad and 01 in A.J & K.

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(3) Establishment of Vocational Training Center at Peshawar for technicaltraining.

(4) Eye treatment of OPs and their dependents on subsidized rates atOPF Eye Hospitals functioning at Mirpur (AJ&K) & Yaro Khoso,D.G. Khan.

(5) Establishment of Complaint Cell to redress the grievances of OPs.

(6) Facility of an ambulance free of cost from airport to deceased/disabled OPs native town/village.

(7) OPF always remains vigilant in case of emergent repatriation fromabroad or natural calamity in overseas Pakistani household areaswithin Pakistan. During the period assistance was provided to 6,556Pakistani workers repatriated from Yemen, Jordan, and Libya.Approximately Rs.6 million spent in this regard. Further, relief campswere established in OP’s households’ concentration areas affecteddue to floods. Similarly, OPF is currently providing financial assistanceto Overseas Pakistanis affected due to earthquake in Awaran,Baluchistan (100 families are being provided financial [email protected]/- family)

(8) OPF spends Rs.60 Million Financial Assistance to 400 families ofOverseas Pakistanis annually in the event of death or disability ofOverseas Pakistanis.

(9) Foreign Exchange Remittance Card (FECRC) scheme for OverseasPakistanis to transfer their remittances through legal / lawful channels.

(10) A Monitoring Cell has been established with effect from 24-06-2013 in OPF Head Office and it functions round the clock sevendays a week.

(11) OPF has established NADRA Swift Centre at OPF Head Office,Islamabad for OPs and it is operational since 12-12-2013 to providethe facility of NICOP and Pakistan Origin Card (POC).

(12) OPF has established airport counters in the arrival / departure loungesof all International Airports to provide assistance to OverseasPakistanis at the time of arrival and departure.

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(13) Free Transport Shuttle Service for Overseas Pakistanis atInternational Airport Islamabad & Karachi.

(14) Grant of Scholarships and merit award to needy children of OverseasPakistanis.

(15) Reservation of seats for admission of the children of OverseasPakistanis in six professional and other colleges throughout Pakistan.


Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the kinds of schemesinitiated by the State Life Insurance Corporation at present?

Minister for Commerce (Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan): Followingare the schemes initiated by SLIC at present:—

Individual Life Assurance Products and Supplementary Contracts

1. Whole Life Assurance:1.1 Whole Life Assurance by Limited Payment.

2. Endowment Assurance2.1 Progressive Assurance:2.2 Anticipated Endowment Assurance (three payment plan)2.3 Joint Life Endowment Life Assurance2.4 Child Protection Assurance2.5 Endowment Life Assurance by Single Premium2.6 Family Pension Plan2.7 Big Deal Plan2.8 Optional Maturity Endowment2.9 Rural life Insurance Plan

2.10 Jeevan Sathi Assurance2.11 Shad Abad Assurance2.12 Sadabahar Plan2.13 Child Education & Marriage Plan2.14 Sunehri Policy2.15 Shehnai Policy:2.16 Muhafaz Plus Assurance

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3. TERM LIFE ASSURANCE3.1 Mortgage Protection3.2 Nigehban Plan

4. ANNUITY SCHEME/PLAN4.1 Immediate Annuities4.2 Deferred Annuities by Single Premium4.3 Deferred Annuities by Annual Premium4.4 Immediate Annuity Certain4.5 Deferred Annuity Certain by Single Premium

5. Personal Pension Scheme.6. Committee Policy7. Salary Saving Scheme8. Non Declinature Scheme9. Supplementary Covers

i. Accidental Death & Indemnity Benefit (AIB)ii. accidental death benefit (ADB)iii. family income benefit (FIB)iv. Waiver of Premium (WP)v. Special Waiver of Premium (SWP)vi. Term Insurance (TI)vii. Guaranteed Insurability (GI)viii. Refund of Premium Rider (RPR)ix. Hospital And Surgical Benefit (H And S)

GROUP & PENSION SCHEMES/PRODUCTS:

1. Term Insurance Scheme2. Provident Fund Insurance Scheme3. House Building & perquisites Insurance Scheme4. Pay Continuation Scheme5. Group Endowment Insurance Scheme6. Group Pension Scheme7. Private Education: Education Plan8. Micro Health Insurance Scheme9. Micro Life Insurance Scheme

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126. Sahibzada Tariq Ullah:

Will the Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment be pleased to state the Welfare Schemes launched forthe Federal Government employees under Employees Old-AgeBenefits Institution during the year 2013-14?

Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourcesDevelopment (Pir Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashidi) : The section 47(a) of theEOB Act . states that the Act is not to apply to the persons in service of state,including members of the armed forces, police force and railway servants.

Therefore, EOBI cannot launch any welfare scheme for the FederalGovernment Employees.

127. Shafqat Mehmood:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state the presentstatus of Pakistan’s relations with Afghanistan?

Minister for Foreign Affairs: Afghanistan is a brotherly country, and aclose neighbour of Pakistan. The two countries share immutable bonds of history,culture and faith.

2. The Government places a central emphasis on building friendly andgood-neighbourly relations with Afghanistan on the basis of mutual respect forsovereignty and territorial integrity. Strengthening cooperative relations withAfghanistan is part of the Prime Minister’s vision of a peaceful and prosperousneighbourhood.

3. The Prime Minister has had four summit level meetings with PresidentHamid Karzai since August 2013 - in Pakistan, UK, Afghanistan and Turkey. Onthe occasion of 8th Turkey-Afghanistan-Pakistan Trilateral Summit in Ankara on12-13 February 2014, the Prime Minister had fruitful talks on security issues andmatters relating to peace and reconciliation. It was emphasized that both countriesshould prevent use of their territory against each other. The two sides agreed tostrengthen dialogue and interaction at the military and intelligence levels and decisionwas taken to have regular Trilateral Political Consultations.

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4. Pakistan continues to play a facilitating role for an inclusive Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace and reconciliation process. We are constructivelyengaged with the High Peace Council (HPC) of Afghanistan to help further thecause of peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan.

5. The Prime Minister has also stressed the importance of forging astrong trade and economic partnership with Afghanistan. Pakistan and Afghanistanare each other’s major trading partners (total trade volume US $ 2.4 billion in2012). The Joint Economic Commission met in Kabul on 22-24 February 2014to take forward the process of diversifying and deepening bilateral economiccooperation. During the visit, Finance Minister Mr. Ishaq Dar also inaugurated aroad project and hospital at Jalalabad, financed through Pakistan’s bilateralassistance.

6. During his visit to Kabul on 30 November 2013, the Prime Ministerannounced increase in Pakistan’s assistance for reconstruction and rehabilitationin Afghanistan from US $ 385 million to US $ 500 million.

7. Despite its economic constraints, Pakistan has extended the stay ofAfghan refugees till 31 December 2015 in the belief that the refugees should returnto their homeland voluntarily and honorably. Interior Secretary met with AfghanDeputy Minister for Interior in Kabul on 9th February 2014 to discuss bordersecurity cooperation. Meanwhile, parliamentary exchanges and people-to-peoplecontacts are growing.

8. The two countries are also working on a range of bilateral andregional projects related to road, rail, energy and connectivity. In the regionalcontext, the two countries are working to promote energy projects like CASA1000 and TAPI gas pipeline.

9. In short, the Government remains focused on building acomprehensive and multi-dimensional relationship and is taking all possible stepsto maintain and further enhance the positive momentum in bilateral relations withAfghanistan.

128. Sajid Ahmed:

Will the Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan be pleasedto state the names of projects being initiated by the Ministry for thedevelopmental works in Azad Jammu and Kashmir?

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Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan (Mr. MuhammadBerjees Tahir): The Ministry of Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan deals withthe development budget under Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP)in AJ&K. The current financial year (2013-14) allocation of PSDP of AJK is Rs.3.492 billion for on-going 05 PSDP projects and Rs. 6.00 billion for SpecialDevelopment Package of 29 development projects under extended part of AJ&KPSDP. The Special Development Package has been incorporated in currentfinancial year (2013-14). Summarized detail is as follow:-——————————————————————————————

No. of PSDP Status Current yearProjects allocation (2013-14)

——————————————————————————————05 On-going Rs. 3.492 billion29 New Rs. 6000 billion

(Initiated in Currentfinical year 2013-14

——————————————————————————————

The detail of projects name is Annexed-AAnnex-A

——————————————————————————————S. No. Name of Project

——————————————————————————————A Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) of AJK(On-

going Projects)1 48 MW Jagran-II Hydro Power Project AJK, District Neelum2 Capacity Building of HEB (Grant)3 Construction of Rathoa Haryam Bridge across reservoir channel on

Mirpur- Islamgarh Road (AJK)4 Multi-Sector Rehabilitation & Improvement Project (MSRIP)5 Water Supply & Sewerage Scheme Mirpur City and HamletsB Special Development Package under PSDP of AJ&K (New

Projects)1 Adventure Based Tourism Promotion Activities2 Athmuqam-Keran Bypass Road3 Bagh-Lasdana-Kahutta Road4 Construction of 1 MW Bhadi Dhoba Hydro Power Project District

haveli5 Construction of 1 MW Galeter Hydro Power Project District Kotli.

——————————————————————————————

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——————————————————————————————S. No. Name of Project

——————————————————————————————6 Construction of 1.7 MW Saridoa Cross hydro Power Project District

Bhimber7 Construction of 6.4 MW Chamfall Hydro Power Project District

Hattian8 Construction of 96 Shelter Less Primary Schools Buildings of

Southern Districts (Kotli, Mirpur & Bhimber) of AJK9 Development and Management of Fish Hatchery, Wildlife and Fishery

in Mangla Lake10 Development of Play Grounds and Provision of Multi Purpose Sports

Facilities at union Council Level11 Fruit Maximizing Project through Grafting of 2.0 Million Wild Fruit

Trees12 Ghazi-e-Millat Poonch Medical College Rawalakot13 Installation of Flood Lights in All Sports Stadiums of AJK14 Kohala-Kalyari-Azad Pattan Road15 Kotli-Mirpur Road16 Mirpur-Bhimber Road17 Mirwaiz Muhammad Farooq Shaheed Medical College

Muzaffarabad18 Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed Medical College Mirpur19 Noseri-Leswa Bypass Road (52 KM)20 Plallandri Sarsaws Road (KM 23-32)21 Promotioni and Development of Water Sports Activities at Mangla

Dam22 Promotioni of Fast Growing Trees for Commercial Wood Production.23 Reconstruction of 70 Non Stralegy Institutions (30 Primary, 20

Meddle & 20 High Schools) Earthquake Affected Damaged SchoolBuildings, Provision of Furniture and other Equipment in 7 Districts(Neelu, Muzaffarabad, Hattian Bala, Haveli, Poonch & Sudnhoti)of AJK.

24 Sarsawa-Sehnsa-Dadyal Road (KM 16-36)25 Self Employment Scheme (Cabs/Auto Rickshaws)26 Up-gradation of Kundal Shahi Hydro Power Station from 2 to 3

MW District Neelum27 Water Supply Scheme Abbaspour Town District Poonch28 Water Supply Scheme Burnala District Bhimber29 Water Supply Scheme Chakswari District Mirpur.

——————————————————————————————

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129. Shazia Mari:


(a) the total number of Afghan Refugees in Pakistan at present;and

(b) whether the Government of Afghanistan contacted theGovernment of Pakistan for voting formalities of AfghanRefugees in the upcoming elections in Afghanistan?

Minister for States and Frontier Region (Lt. Gen. (Retd.) AbdulQadir Baloch): (a) At present, there are approximately 1.6 million registered aswell as over one million un-registered Afghans living in Pakistan.

(b) The Ministry of SAFRON has not yet received any request fromGovernment of Afghanistan for voting formalities of Afghan refugees in theirupcoming elections.

130. Shazia Mari:


(a) whether it is a fact that India has imposed restrictions onPakistanis for travelling to India; if so, the reasons thereof;

(b) the steps being taken by the Government to address the saidissue?

Minister for Foreign Affairs: (a) No instance has come into the noticeof this Ministry that India has imposed restrictions on Pakistanis for travelling toIndia except that foreigners from eight (08) countries, including Pakistan, wherePolio is endemic, administration of Oral Polio Vaccination and a Polio VaccinationCertificate is required. This restriction was imposed by India in December 2013and has come into effect from March 1st 2014.

Travelling to India by Pakistani nationals or vice versa in all visa categoriesis based on the bilateral Visa Agreement signed in September 2012, betweenPakistan and India.

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(b) Upon receipt of such cases where Pakistanis are faced problems atthe hands of the Indian immigration or other authorities due to visa and or movementrestrictions, this Ministry, through High Commission for Pakistan in New Delhi,assists them immediately.

On the issue of Polio vaccination, Ministry of Health Services has beenapproached to streamline the procedure of issuance of certificates by introducinga panel of hospitals in the federal and provincial level to issue such certificate. Thisinformation has not yet been received by the Ministry of Health Services, despiteseveral reminders. Once this information is provided, it will be transmitted to Indianside to ensure that delays at immigration check posts do not take place.

131. Dr. Shireen Mehrunnisa Mazari:


(a) the total number of employees of the Foreign Service postedabroad before completion of their services at Head Quarters/Ministry during the last three years till date alongwith the criteriaadopted therefor; and

(b) whether it is a fact that the said selective favours are beinggiven continuously; if so, the reasons thereof?

Minister for Foreign Affairs: (a) Posting/ transfer to missions abroadhas separate set of criteria/ guidelines for the officers and staff. The criterion is abroad framework and not definite since this phenomenon is guided more byexigencies of service.

There are specified numbers of posts abroad in each grade for officers inthe Missions abroad. The normal stay at HQ before proceeding on posting abroadis between 1-2 years. A Seniority Roster in terms of stay in the Ministry is maintainedfor all officers. Postings in the Missions are done on the basis of seniority in theRoster, availability of posts in specific grade, previous postings, suitability of officersfor the said posts, contingencies of service and personal preferences of the officers.As the stay at HQ is not fixed, therefore, there were no out of turn postings assuch for officers, except for exigencies of service or extreme personal circumstances,for instance:

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——————————————————————————————S. No Name Posted to Remarks

————————————————————————————————————————1 Mr. Noor Muhammad Iran Exigencies of service i.e. due to nature of

Jadmani, Ambassador relationship with Iran, requirement of sending a senior (BS 22) officer at theearliest. The post remained vacant after retirement of the incumbent Ambassador for over four months before Mr. Jadmani was posted.

2 Syed Moazzam Shah, Kabul Exigencies of service i.e. requirement of aDeputy Head of Mission senior officer with fluent Persian/Dari

language skills.

3 Mr. Atif Dar, Third Kabul The officer was considered for early postingSecretary as he could not afford the expensive health

care needs of his ailing father. Being posted at Kabul (a non-family station), the officer can financially afford the treatment of his father in Pakistan.

4 Dr. Manzoor Chaudhary, Niamey The officer volunteered for the posting, asCharge d’ Affaires a.p. no other officer was inclined to proceed to

Niamey at that time.————————————————————————————————————————

Postings/transfers of officials to Pakistan Missions abroad are made onthe basis of established criteria. Separate Posting Rosters are maintained for eachcadre. They are posted to Pakistan Missions abroad on the basis of seniority intheir respective cadres. Stay of officials at Headquarters varies from cadre tocadre. Meetings of the Departmental Transfer Committees (DTCs) headed by aDirector General are held after regular intervals. The Committee recommends theofficials for posting abroad on the basis of the following criteria:

- Seniority in the posting roster (stay at Headquarters)- Fitness/ Merit (detailed examination of service record and ACRs)- Suitability for the post under consideration- Medical fitness certificate from Civil Surgeon- Previous postings abroad (by classification of stations)- Family circumstances (schooling of children/ medical considerations)- Personal preference

No request from the staff members for out of turn posting is generallyentertained/considered except under exceptional grounds/ circumstances and thattoo as a special case. Against so many request: received from the Ministry’s staff

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members for out of turn posting during the last three years, only the followingofficials were posted abroad out of turn due to the reasons mentioned against each:

——————————————————————————————S. No Name Posted to Remarks

————————————————————————————————————————1. Muhammad Furqan, Embassy of Against normal stay of 05 years at HQ in the

Assistant Pakistan, Assistant Cadre, he was posted after threeTripoli years under Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Balochistan.

2. Muhammad Murtaza, Embassy of He was posted in 2012 on medical groundsLDC Pakistan, of his wife who is a cancer patient. Secondly,

Kyiv he was near retirement and was unable to bearthe medical expenses of his wife’s treatment being a low paid employee.

3. Allah Waraya, Embassy of The official was given out of turn postingDriver Pakistan, in 2011 due to financial hardship.

Riyadh

4. Ameer Hamza, Embassy of He was posted out of turn basis in 2012 dueDriver Pakistan, to serious family reasons.

Riyadh

5. Abdul Rahim, High He was given out of turn posting in 2012 asNaib Qasid Commission a special case due to personal reasons.

for Pakistan,New Delhi

———————————————————————————————————————————

(b) Selective favours are not given to any officer/officials of the MinistryHowever, under special circumstances, a few officials were giver posting out ofturn as explained above.

132. Dr. Shireen Mehrunnisa Mazari:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state the totalnumber of employees who are presently serving on extensions/post-retirement basis in the Ministry alongwith the justifications thereof?

Minister for Foreign Affairs: Currently there are following four retiredForeign Service officers who have been re-employed on contract as Ambassador.

- Mr. Haroon Shoukat, Ankara (Turkey)- Mr. Munawar Saeed Bhatti, Brussels (Belgium)- Mr. Zamir Akram, Geneva (Parep UN)- Mr. Masood Khan, New York (Parep UN)

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It is the prerogative of government to re-employ Ambassadors after theirretirement, based on their experience and expertise.


Will the Minister for States and Frontier Regions be pleased to statethe steps being taken by the Government to control Jaundice in FATA?

Reply not received.


Will the Minister for States and Frontier Regions be pleased to referto Starred Question No.194 replied on 7-2-2014 and to state:

(a) whether it is a fact that a number of persons were martyred,seriously and slightly injured in Tribal Areas-VII (NA-42) duringthe Operation Rah-e-Nijat;

(b) if so, the total amount of compensation given to them separatelyalongwith their names and addresses?

Reply not received.

135. Aisha Syed:

Will the Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourceDevelopment be pleased to state the names, educationalqualifications, experience and domicile of persons appointed in theEmployees° Old-age Benefit Institution during the last five years?

Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human ResourcesDevelopment (Pir Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashidi) : List of persons appointedduring the last five years is at Annex- A.


136. Aaisha Gulalai:

Will the Minister for States and Frontier Regions be pleased to statethe steps being taken by the Ministry to promote sports activities inFATA?

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Minister for States and Frontier Regions (Lt. Gen. (Retd.) AbdulQadir Baloch): The Government realizing the FATA potential channelized sportsactivities for the FATA youth, through an ADP scheme in the year 2006-07. SNEof 18 posts was approved in 2013-14 and Directorate of Sports FATA is nowfully functional.

1. Keeping in view the importance of sports and youth involvement, sofar 23 FATA sports association have been registered with respective Federationson National level. These sports associations, elected FATA Olympic Association.Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is Pioneer President of FATA Olympic Association.

2. There are 16 sports complexes in FATA. 06 sports complexes areoperational and 10 are under construction. International standard sports complexhas also been envisaged in FATA in ADP 2013-14. Detail of sports complexes areat (Annexure-A)

3. Directorate of Sports FATA participates in all the sports competitionsplanned by Pakistan Sports Board, National Sports Federations and Nationalgames in their boys, girls, junior and senior category events. Directorate of SportsFATA is the only Directorate of Country which conducts school level competition.Directorate of Sports FATA also which gives cash awards of Rs.70,000/- to 1stposition holder, Rs. 60,000/- to 2nd position holder and Rs.40,000/-to 3rd positionholder. Many potential players have been sponsored for international events. (Listis at Annexure B)


KARAMAT HUSSAIN NIAZI, Secretary.

ISLAMABAD:The 2nd March, 2014.

PCPPI—309(2014) NA—2-3-2014—700.

(9th session) national assembly secretariat · minister for commerce (engr. khurram dastgir khan):...

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