LAHORE: The Punjab government is still paying interest to commercial banks for the high-cost loans it had taken for the Sasti Roti scheme years ago. The scheme has been lying closed since 26013.
The bank payments issue surfaced during a meeting of the Punjab Assembly`s Public Accounts Committee (PAC-I) when it took up audit paras pertaining to the food department.
The committee chaired by opposition leader Mian Mehmoodur Rashid was told that millions of rupees were being paid to various banks for around Rs16 billion loan the government had taken for the Sasti Roti project introduced in 2008.Under the scheme, the subsidized atta (wheat flour) was supplied to14,500 tandoors and 47 mechanical roti plants for the provision of rotis to the downtrodden at half the market cost (Rs2 per roti against Rs4 market price).
The provincial government had sacked two provincial secretaries, one commissioner and three district coordination officers reportedly for opposing the scheme.
Launched in haste and without any proper monitoring mechanism in place, reports of embezzlement surfaced soon as atta was being supplied to ghost tandoors.
There were also complaints that those tandoors were also included in the scheme which were located in posh areas and catering to the well-off customers.
The scheme, which was partially closed during 2010 floods to divert the funds for rehabilitation of flood victims, came to a grinding halt in July 2013. Its closure also caused a heavy loss to the investors who had set up large mechanical tandoors in the hope that the project would continue for years.
When the PAC asked about the bank payments though the scheme had been shutdown years ago, the food department told committee members that only Rs8bn out of total Rs24bn was paid pack and for rest of the amount the government was paying interest running into tens of millions of rupees.
Mr Rashid got angry with food secretary Asif Bilal Lodhi when he failed to submit a report about the supply of atta to ghost tandoors.
The secretary sought 45 more days to complete the task with a district-wise report on number of ghost tandoors, their owners and the officials who supplied them the subsidized atta.which were located in posh areas and catering to the well-off customers.
The scheme, which was partially closed during 2010 floods to divert the funds for rehabilitation of flood victims, came to a grinding halt in July 2013. Its closure also caused a heavy loss to the investors who had set up large mechanical tandoors in the hope that the project would continue for years.
When the PAC asked about the bank payments though the scheme had been shutdown years ago, the food department told committee members that only Rs8bn out of total Rs24bn was paid pack and for rest of the amount the government was paying interest running into tens of millions of rupees.
Mr Rashid got angry with food secretary Asif Bilal Lodhi when he failed to submit a report about the supply of atta to ghost tandoors.
The secretary sought 45 more days to complete the task with a district-wise report on number of ghost tandoors, their owners and the officials who supplied them the subsidized atta.
