Parliament of Pakistan - NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SECRETARIAT … · 2015. 6. 11. · Pakistan Locomotive...

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(49th Session)

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SECRETARIAT

—————

“QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWERS AND THEIR REPLIES”

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

Monday, the 21st January, 2013

(Originally Starred Question Nos. 51, 80 and 89, were set down for answerduring the 48th Session)

51. *Sheikh Salahuddin:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state the stepsbeing taken to handle Geo-political situation with Iran in order toimplement the Iran-Pakistan (IP) Gas Pipeline Project?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar): Gas supplyis of critical importance for Pakistan because of the acute shortage of energy thatwe are facing today. The UN sanctions imposed on Iran do not include the Iranianenergy sector. However, the US and EU sanctions inter-alia; apply to Iran’s oiland gas sector and any financial transactions with the Central Bank of Iran and itsother sanctioned banks. Notwithstanding the above, progress is being made forthe implementation of IP Gas Pipeline Project. We have signed Gas Sale andPurchase Agreement (GSPA) and an Agreement for the Construction of the Pipelineinside Pakistan. The length of the pipeline on our side of the border is 781 kilometers.Its estimated cost is US$ 1.5 billion (approx). Funding of the project, however,remains a major challenge. We are working out further modalities with the Iraniangovernment to overcome the financial implications.

80. *Shaikh Rohale Asghar:

Will the Minister for Railways be pleased to state:

(a) the total number of workshops/factories owned by the PakistanRailways in the country at present;

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(b) the year-wise income earned by those workshops/factorjes duringthe last five years separately; and

(c) the year-wise expenditures incurred on those factories/workshopsduring the said period separately?

Minister for Railways (Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour): (a) There areseven factories and seven workshops over Pakistan Railways. The detail of thesame is given as under:—

1. Railways Factories

i. Pakistan Locomotive Factory, Risaipur

ii. Railway Carriage, Factory, Islamabad

iii. Concrete Sleeper Factory, Khanewal

iv. Concrete Sleeper Factory, Sukkur

v. Concrete Sleeper Factory, Kohat Cantt

vi. Concrete Sleeper Factory, Kotri

vii. Concrete Sleeper Factory, Shahinbad (closed since 1996)

2. Railways Workshops

i. Central Diesel Locomotive Shops/Rawalpindi

ii. Loco Shops / Moghalpura, Lahore

iii. Carriage & Wagon Shops/Moghalpura, Lahore

iv. Steel Shops / Moghalpura, Lahore

v. Electrical Shops / Moghalpura, Lahore

vi. Carriage & Wagon Shops / Hyderabad

vii. Diesel Shed & Shop / Karachi

(b) It is pertinent to mention that Railways workshops/factories areconcerned with maintenance/manufacture of rolling stock and locomotives, andindirectly concerned with the revenue by providing the rolling stock to the operatingdivisions which in turn generate revenue for railway through passenger and freightservices. These are not private/corporate entities and do not generate own income

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arid Pakistan Railways is sole captive client. Value of works carried out by factoriesi.e Concrete Sleepers Factories and Railway Carriage Factory is given inArmexure-A.

(c) The detail of year wise expenditure for the last five years is given inAnnexure-B.

Annexure-A

(Figures in Million)——————————————————————————————

Value of Works Carried out————————————————————

Years Concrete Sleeper Pakistan LocomotiveFactories Factory

——————————————————————————————

2007-2008 837.213 511.847

2008-2009 932.126 65.284

2009-2010 432.047 45.119

2010-2011 441.040 120.628

2011-2012 518.176 79.621——————————————————————————————

Annexure-B


Expenditure of Railways Factories————————————————————

Years Concrete Sleeper Pakistan LocomotiveFactories Factory

——————————————————————————————

2007-2008 949.948 155.562

2008-2009 881.052 124.352

2009-2010 396.593 114.256

2010-2011 540.915 141.855

2011-2012 476.284 175.525——————————————————————————————

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Expenditire of Years Railways Workshops

——————————————————————————————2007-2008 474.8792008-2009 490.8362009-2010 626.7362010-2011 752.8952011-2012 966 424

——————————————————————————————

89. *Sheikh Muhammad Tariq Rasheed:

Will the Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan be pleasedto state:

(a) the statutory functions of the Ministry;

(b) the year-wise budget allocated for development works/schemesduring the last five fiscal years alongwith the utilization thereof;and

(c) whether audit for the utilization of said funds conducted duringthe said period; if so, the details thereof?

Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan (Mian ManzoorAhmad Wattoo): (a) The Statutory functions of Ministry of Kashmir Affairs andGilgit-Baltistan are as under:—

i. Policy, planning and development for GB

ii. Co-ordination with the Govt of Gilgit-Baltistan Council

iii. Co-ordination with the Azad Government of the State of Jammu andKashmir and the AJ&K Council.

iv. Matters relating to the settlement of Kashmir dispute, other thanthose falling within in the purview of the Foreign Affairs Division.

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v. Administration of Jammu and Kashmir State Property in Pakistan

vi. Processing of development schemes reflected in the PSDP of Ministryof Kashmir Affairs and GB at the level of CDWP and ECNEC.

vii. Co-ordination between the Federal Govt Organizations and the Govtof GB and the Giligit-Baltistan Council.

viii. Mainstreaming population factor in development planning process inAzad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

ix. Management and distribution of Zakat and Ushr in Azad Jammu andKashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan and the related and ancillary mattersincluding distribution setup and monitoring and auditing thereof.

(b) Development budget in respect of Governments of AJ&K and Gilgit-Baltistan is released to both governments directly by Ministry of Finance. Yearwise budget allocated for development works/schemes in respect of this Ministry,Govt of AJ&K and Govt of Gilgit-Baltistan for the last five fiscal years along withutilization thereof is as under:—

———————————————————————————————————————————Block Allocation PSDP Projects Grand Total

Years ——————————————————————————————————————Allocation Utilization Allocation Utilization Allocation Utilization

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

2007-08 12300.000 11492.394 1422.103 654.635 13722.103 12147.029

2008-09 14800.000 12178.529 2815.103 1105.328 17615.103 13283.857

2009-10 17252.500 9893.433 8268.938 1638.492 25521.438 11531.925

2010-11 9666.689 10498.638 7441.717 2378.062 17108.404 12876.700

*2011-12 14360.560 14215.076 4595.329 2706.379 18955.889 16921.455

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

• Included the Devolved Ministries Projects of Govt of AJ&K & GB.

(c) The audit of development budget of said period in respect of Govtof AJ&K and Govt of Gilgit-Baltistan has been conducted. The audit reports ofGB Govt for year 2005-06, 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09 have been presentedbefore the PAC. For rest of the reports they are in process to render repliesagainst audit reports to their own governments. Government of AJK is also inprocess to render replies against audit reports to their own government.

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1. *Ms. Qudsia Arshad:

Will the Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baitistan be pleasedto state:

(a) whether the Citizens of Pakistan can purchase the property inAzad Kashmir; if not, the reasons thereof; and

(b) whether citizens of Azad Kashmir can purchase property inPakistan; if so, the justification thereof?

Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan (Mian ManzoorAhmed Wattoo): (a) According to Article-04 of Azad Jammu and KashmirAlienation of Land Act, 1995 Bik (1898 AD) transfer of land in AJ&K to anyperson, who is not a state subject, is prohibited.

(b) Under Section 14-B of Pakistan Citizenship Act, 1951 (Act II of1951) citizen of AJ&K enjoys the citizenship of Pakistan also, therefore, they areentitled to purchase property in Pakistan also.

2. *Ms. Qudsia Arshad:


(a) whether it is a fact that all locomotives of Pakistan Railwaysare operational at present; if so, the details thereof;

(b) the total number of locomotives repaired during the year2011-12 till date; and

(c) whether it is also a fact that financial and working conditionsof the Pakistan Railways are being improved gradually; if so,the details thereof?

Minister for Railways (Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour): (a) It is correctthat all DE Locomotives of Pakistan Railways are not operational at present. Thedetails are as under:—

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——————————————————————————————Total DE Locos. Owned Out of In working /including

by Pakistan Railways service passenger, Goods &shunting /departmental,

——————————————————————————————465 312 153

——————————————————————————————

The out of service locomotives are held up for want of imported spareswhich could not be procured in the past due to financial constraints.

(b) 184 D.E. locomotives of various classes were repaired in back shopsduring the year 2011- 2012 to date.

(c) The financial position has improved slightly to the extent of arrangingpayments salary/pension to the employees and pensioner of Pakistan Railwaysand financing of PSD projects. Moreover, Finance Division is releasing a subsidyof Rs.2.583 billion on monthly basis for salaries/pension. Although this subsidy isstill insufficient to cover the salary/pension bill, the increase in revenues has enabledPakistan Railways to pay off other liabilities, such as G.P. Fund final payments,pension, commutation contractors’ bills, etc.

3. *Ms. Nighat Parveen Mir:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state whether it is afact that Iran has given a proposal to Pakistan to set up a tradecentre at Jalegh on Pak -Iran bender for promoting bilateral trade; ifso, the details thereof?

Minister for Commerce (Makhdoom Muhammad Amin Fahim):Islamic Republic of Iran proposed to open a new border market on Pak-Iranborder near Jalegh on 17th November, 2012.

Ministry of Commerce has started consultations with stakeholders. In thisregard, Federal Board of Revenue, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Interiorand Provincial Government of Baluchistan have been requested for their views/comments in order to proceed further in the matter.

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4. *Ms. Shaheen Ishfaq:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state:

(a) the total number of Pakistani prisoners in Hungry, Kuwait andNepal, separately at present; and

(b) the assistance being provided by the Government to saidprisoners for their release?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar): (a) Thetotal numbers of Pakistani prisoners in Hungry, Kuwait and Nepal, separately atpresent, are as under:———————————————————————————————

Country Number of PakistaniName Prisoners/detaineesHungry 60Kuwait 314Nepal 22

——————————————————————————————

(b) The steps being taken by the government for their legal assistanceare as under:—

(i) A Special Cell on Overseas Pakistanis (SCOP), headed by DirectorGeneral (Overseas Pakistanis) was constituted in May, 2010 andDirector General (OP) was deputed as Liaison Officer. The complaintsreceived through relatives of our expatriates are processed incoordination with our Missions abroad.

(ii) Consular access is provided to the detainees/prisoners.

(iii) Our Missions provide the services of interpreters, whenever required.

(iv) Facilitate the deportation of detainees.

(v) Maintaining contacts with the local authorities regarding detention/imprisonment of Pakistanis.

(vi) Provision of facility of contacts to the prisoners and their visitingrelatives.

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(vii) Transmission of detainees concerns to the concerned local authoritiesfor their redressal.

(viii) Release of Pakistani prisoners through payment of fines. In 2010-1192 prisoners were got released and in 2011-12 our Missions inKuwait, UAE & Saudi Arabia were authorized to pay fines of 30prisoners from PCW & E Fund.

5. *Ms. Tasneem Siddiqui:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased, to state the year-wise total number of prisoners released by the Government ofPakistan and Bangladesh, separately during the period from15-3-2008 till date alongwith the details thereof?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar): Theyear-wise total number of prisoners released by the Government of Pakistan andBangladesh during the period from 15-3-2008 till date are as under:—

(i) Number of Pakistani prisoners released——————————————————————————————

Year Prisoners released——————————————————————————————

2008 12009 02010 32011 52012 3

——————————————————————————————Total: 11

——————————————————————————————Details of Pakistani prisoners are as under :—

——————————————————————————————S. Name of Prisoner Date/year Remarks

No. of release———————————————————————————————————————————

1. Omar Kader 9-3-2008 Released after completion of 2 yearsS/o Abdul Kader sentence

2. Muhammad Zahid 15-11-2010 Released after one year detentionS/o Muhammad Ashraf

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

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——————————————————————————————S. Name of Prisoner Date/year Remarks

No. of release———————————————————————————————————————————

3. Munawar Ali 15-11-2010 Released after one year detentionS/o Ali Ahmad

4. Syed Sfian Azhari 15-11-2010 Released after one year detentionS/o Abdul Qayyum Azhari

5. Muhammad Jamil 2011 Released on bail

6. Sher Afzal S/o Amir Jada 2011 Released on bail

7. Kamar Abedin 2011 Released on bailS/o Muhammad Yasin

8. Muhammad Shahabuddin 2011 Released on bail

9. Muhammad Danish 2011 Released on bailS/o Sohail Ahmad

10. Sajid Khan S/o Farid Khan 2012 Released on bail

11. Muhammad Aslam 2012 Released on bail

12. Mrs. Nargas 2012 Released on bailW/o Muhammad Aslam

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

(ii) Number of Bengali prisoners/detainees released——————————————————————————————

Year Bengali Prisoners Regulation/Law appliedreleased/repatriated

——————————————————————————————2008 94 14-Foreigner Act i.e.

Immigration Law Infringement2009 80 -do-2010 86 -do- 2011 98 -do-2012 113 -do-

——————————————————————————————Total: 471

——————————————————————————————


Will the Minister for Commerce -be pleased to state the reasons ofimbalance of imports and exports of the country during the last fouryears till date?

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Minister for Commerce (Makhdoom Muhammad Amin Fahim):Imbalance of imports and exports results in trade deficit, i.e. import bill exceedsexport proceeds/income. Pakistan’s balance of trade has been in deficit for thelast four years. The major reasons of imbalance of imports and exports of Pakistanare:—

(i) Energy Crisis: The main cause behind decline in exports is the everworsening energy crises. All the major industrialists/exporters arecomplaining about the severe shortage of energy supply. Energyshortages have badly affected the not only production but exportsalso.

(ii) Price Fluctuations: Exports and Imports are affected adversely byfluctuations in prices in international and domestic markets.Fluctuations in prices are a global phenomenon in the world ofeconomics. Pakistan is a small and weak economy. Therefore,Pakistan is affected by fluctuations in prices at global level. Our importbill surges with increase in prices of oil and machinery.

(iii) Pak-Iran Trade: USA trade restrictions on Iran have affected thePak-Iran trade relations badly.

(iv) Inelastic Trade: Pakistan’s import structure and demand is veryinelastic. The share of energy/petroleum in Pakistan’s imports is 34%.There is no room for curtailment or austerity measures. Energy importbill is expected to rise even further in the near future in wake ofpresent situation of CNG and gasoline fuels.

(v) Law and order situation: The prevailing Law & Order situationhas affected investment and export promotion adversely. As aconsequence of present situation investment are not at optimum.Observing the behavior of local investors, foreign investors arereluctant to bring any capital in the country.

(vi) Rupees Depreciation: For the past five years Pak Rupee haspersistently losing its value against almost all the major globalcurrencies. In the past five years Pak Rupee has depreciated 58%.Due to decline in Rupee value our export earnings are shrinking inspite of quantitative increase in exports. In addition to that, the valueof imported products, energy, metals, and materials (used as input in

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our industrial and agricultural production) are rising rampantly. Thisphenomenon is inflating the prices of industrial/agricultural productsand making them un-competitive in domestic and internationalmarkets.


Will the Minister for Railways be pleased to state the reasons ofimbalance between income and expenditure of the Pakistan Railwaysat present?

Minister for Railways (Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour): There is aresource gap between income and expenditure of Pakistan Railways since theseventies. This main reasons for this imbalance are given as under:—

(i) PR operations could not be expanded with the passage of time tocater for increasing number of potential passengers;

(ii) Rising expenses were far more than increase in revenues;

(iii) In past, Federal and Provincial Governments focused thedevelopments of road sector and railways could not get due share ofallocation in Five Years Plans and Annual Development Plans ofTransport Sector allocation;

(iv) Fuel costs increased rapidly after Gulf War;

(v) Federal Government has increased the salary/pension every yearsince 2005;

(vi) The circular debt of Federal Government forced the FederalGovernment to decrease the subsidy of PR.

(vii) The cost of utilities i.e. electricity, water and gas increased rapidlysince the year 2000.

(viii) Federal Government set unrealistic revenue targets for PRAdministration since 2003-04 to keep subsidy on lower side.

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(ix) Failure and continuous delay in induction of new locomotives has ledto a depleted fleet of locomotives which has resulted in suspensionof a large number of passenger trains and a virtual standstill in freightoperations.

8. *Mrs. Nisar Tanveer:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state:

(a) whether it is a fact that the period to Import used cars has beenreduced from five years to three years recently;

(b) whether it is also a fact that the Competition Commission ofPakistan(CCP) and National Tariff Commission (NTC) havebeen given mandate to assess the pros and cons of such reduction;

(c) whether it is further a fact that the said reduction has been madebefore the reduction of such assessments;

(d) if the answers to parts (a), (b) and (c) above are in theaffirmative, the justification to make such reduction prior tosaid assessments?

Minister for Commerce (Makhdoom Muhammad Amin Fahim):(a) Yes, this is true that age limit of import of used cars under baggage schemes hasbeen reduced from five to three years by making necessary amendment in theImport Policy order through SRO No. 1441(I)/2012 dated 15-12-2012.

(b) On the receipt of the summary for input by this Ministry from Ministryof Industries for the ECC, containing proposal to reduce age limit of cars from fiveto three years, NTC was requested on 24-10-2012 to carryout a study into theprotection levels of the auto-industry and recommend optimum tariffs and policyfor the importation of second handcars. The NTC was also requested to study theimpact of the importation of second handcars, buses and trucks in to Pakistan onlocal manufacturing, competition and consumer welfare.

(c) National Tariff Commission, in pursuance to this Ministry’s direction,issued notices to all the concerned stakeholders and held its preliminary hearing

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on 27th November, 2012 and called for necessary data/information on theirprescribed format. As per its mandate, NTC has to complete its study and submitits report with the 120 days to the Government. NTC has not yet finalized itsrecommendation.

(d) ECC in its earlier meeting on the same issue held on 23-10-2012constituted a committee headed by Deputy Prime Minister/ Minister for Industries.The Ministry of Industries submitted summary to ECC, in light of recommendationof the said committee, proposing to reduce age limit of cars from five to threeyears under the baggage schemes. The proposal was approved by ECC on22-11-2012 and SRO was issued by this Ministry on 12-12-2012, effective from15-12-2012.

9. *Mrs. Nisar Tanveer:

Will the Minister for Railways The pleased to state:

(a) whether it is fact that Pakistan Railways has made an agreementwith Chinese firm to procure 75 new locomotives during thelast two years; if so, the details thereof;

(b) whether it is also a fact that such agreement has not beenmaterialized; if so, the reasons thereof;

(c) whether it is further a fact that Pakistan Railway is paying.Rs3.75 million per month to the said firm; if so, the justificationthereof;

(d) whether procedural codes were adopted while making suchagreement; if not, the reasons thereof; and

(e) the steps being taker to address the said matter alongwith theaction taken against the responsibles?

Minister for Railways (Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour): (a) A contractagreement for procurement/manufacture of 75 Diesel Electric Locomotivesamounting to US$ 105.143 million was signed with M/s. Dongfang ElectricCorporation, China on December 31, 2008 as per following breakup:—

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——————————————————————————————HORSE POWER QUANTITY

OF THE ————————————————LOCOMOTIVE *CBU **CKD TOTAL

——————————————————————————————1500 15 — 15

2000 05 25 30

3000 05 25 30——————————————————————————————

Total 25 50 75——————————————————————————————

* Completely Built Unit

** Completely Knocked Down

Down payment of US$ 15.771 million, comprising 15 percent of thecontract amount, was released to the firm in June 2009. Buyer’s loan agreementwas signed with Export-Import Bank of China on December 14, 2009 for theremaining 85% (US$ 89.372 million) and an, amount of US$ 10.801 million wastransferred to China Exim Bank and Sinosure in March 2010. However, Letter ofCredit has not yet been established.

Out of 75 locomotives, 25 will be received in Completely Built UpCondition, whereas the remaining 50 will be manufactured/assembled locally atPakistan Locomotive Factory, Risalpur. The entire material is scheduled to bedelivered within 45 months after effectiveness of the contract agreement.

(b) Yes, the agreement has not materialized so far due to some proceduralviolations/deviations from Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) rulesduring tender process, rectification of which requires condonation by the competentauthority. The matter has thus been referred to the Federal Cabinet for decision.

(c) Commitment charges for the unutilised portion of the loan involve aliability of US$ 1,489.53 per day since loan effectiveness. An amount of onlyUS$ 11,915.24 has so far been paid for the period January 13-2-2010.

(d) Pakistan Railways followed prevalent codal provisions, proceduresand practices for finalization of tenders. The agreement was signed after the termsand conditions of the loan were approved by the competent forum i.e. Law Divisionand Finance Division.

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The deviations/violations of procurement rules in this tender were notexclusive to any specific bidder but related equally to both the technically qualifiedbidders. The contract was awarded to Chinese manufacturer after following a fairtendering process.

(e) A summary regarding “Grant of condonation of deviations/ departuresof Public Procurement Rules, 2004 in the Procurement of 75 Locomotives” hasbeen submitted to the Cabinet for consideration and the decision is awaited.

10. *Mrs. Seema Mohiuddin Jameeli:


(a) the main reasons of losses of Pakistan Railways at present; and

(b) the steps taken to control the said losses during, the last fiveyears?

Minister for Railways (Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour): (a) The mainreasons of losses of Pakistan Railways are as under :—

1. Less availability of locomotives due to deferred maintenance of oldfleet on account of paucity of funds which has badly affectedpassenger and freight train operations, the main source of earning forPakistan Railways.

2. Pakistan Railways is a public service entity and does not operatepurely on commercial lines it has to keep operative some un-remunerative and un-economical routes in larger public interest.

3. Increase in salaries of Government employees, and relief providedto pensioners has added to the financial burden.

4. Increase in fuel, gas and electricity costs, have also contributed torising deficit.

5. Damages to Railways assets worth Rs. 6.73 billion due to floods of2010/2011 is another contributory reason causing losses.

6. Deficient investment in rolling stock, which would have enhancedthe capacity to reduce the deficit.

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(b) Following steps are being taken by the Government to control thesaid losses:—

1. To overcome the present crises, Pakistan Railway is procuring upto275 new locomotives and repairing old ones through various sources.

2. Railway has involved private sector to participate in different activitiesof P.R. i.e. rehabilitation of ageing locomotives, development of DryPorts and commercial management of passenger trains etc.

3. Through Track Access Regime, private sector has been invited tooperate freight trains on Pakistan Railways infrastructure on paymentof track access charges to PR. The idle capacity available with PRwill be utilized and additional revenue for PR will also be generated.

4. Doubling of track between Karachi and Lahore will be completedby December 2013, providing additional capacity to run more trains.

5. Installation of modern signalling system is in progress, which willfacilitate in smooth train operations.

Following steps are being taken by the Government to control the saidlosses:—

(1) Locomotives repair plans.

(i) Rehabilitation of 27 HGMU-30 D.E. Locomotives, throughPSDP.

(ii) Repair of 96 locomotives through Loan from BankingConsortium (PRACS Project).

(iii) Repair plan of 30 Locomotives through Public PrivatePartnership (PPP).

(iv) Special Repair of 150 D.E Locomotives through PSDP.

(2) Procurement of new Locomotives.

(i) 75 Nos. D.E. Locomotives from PEC/DLOCO, China

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(ii) 150 Nos. D.E. Locomotives, bidding process in final stage.

(iii) 50 Nos. D.E. Locomotives, agreement executed withsuccessful bidder.

Railway is also inviting private sector to participate in its different activitiesi.e rehabilitation of ageing locomotives, development of Dry Ports, commercialManagement of Passenger trains and private sector freight trains to operate onP.R infrastructure on payment of train access charges etc to generate more revenue.

11. *Mrs. Shagufta Sadiq:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state whether there isany proposal under consideration of the Government to impose banon import, of Gutka; if so, when it will be implemented?

Minister for Commerce (Makhdoom Muhammad Amin Fahim):No proposal is presently under consideration to impose a ban on import of Gutka.The same is generally classified in the category of “Others”, meant for mixture offruits, nuts and others edible parts of plants and is importable provided it is fit forhuman consumption/not injurious to health and has at least 50% of the shelf life atthe time of importation.

12. *Shaikh Rohale Asghar:


(a) the names of trains/goods trains privatized by the PakistanRailways so far; and

(b) the train-wise total income earned by the Pakistan Railwaysduring the last two years therefrom?

Minister for Railways (Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour): (a) No trainshave been privatized by Pakistan Railways so far, However, Pakistan Railwayshas entered into Public Private Partnership in the running of three trains namely theBusiness Express, Shalimar Express and Night Coach by transferring commercialmanagement to the Private sector under a capacity payment arrangement. TheNight coach Train is expected to be launched on January 15, 2013.

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(b) The Business Express and Shalimar express were outsourced w.e.f04-02-2012 and 26-02-2012 respectively and the earning of these train uptoDecember 31, 2012 are as under:—

TRAIN EARNING (Rs. in Million)

Business Express 775.396

Shalimar Express 434.294

13. *Mr. Muhammad Riaz Malik:

Will the Minister for Railways be pleased, to state:

(a) the persons entitled to travel free Find at concessional rate bytrains in the country at present alongwith other facilities beingprovided to those persons separately;

(b) the financial burden faced by the Pakistan Railways therefromduring the year 2011-12 till date; and

(c) whether there is any proposal under consideration of theGovernment to withdraw those facilities; if so, when it will beimplemented?

Minister for Railways (Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour): (a) PakistanRailways is providing following free / concessional travelling facilities to its in serviceand retired employees.

1. Limited number of free passes.

2. Limited number of privilege ticket order (PTO’s) facility with paymentof 1/3rd of fare.

General public can avail concessional monthly suburban ticket facility anpayment of 15 fares in a month upto 70 Kms of journey. Journalists, scouts,students and disabled persons all also given concession in fare as per governmentpolicy.

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Other facilities provided to Railways employees:—

1. provision of kit wagon for shifting the house hold effect on transfer.

2. medical facilities at Railways hospitals dispensaries.

3. education facilities at Railways schools in major cities to children ofemployees.

4. recreational / function facilities at Railway clubs and institutions.

(b) The free passes and concessional tickets (PTO’s) are normallyadjusted against vacant seats in the trains and as such it does not imply directmonetary burden. However their equivalent worth for the year 2010-2011 and2011 -2012 are as under :———————————————————————————————

# Year Earning——————————————————————————————

1 2010-2011 419.234 million2 2011-2012 533.487 million

——————————————————————————————

(c) There is no such proposal under consideration of the Government towithdraw these facilities being provided to the employees of Pakistan Railway.

14. *Ms. Imrana Saeed Jamil:


(a) the steps being taken to increase the trade volume with SAARCcountries; and

(b) the details of trade made with those countries during the lastfour, years till date?

Minister for Commerce (Makhdoom Muhammad Amin Fahim):(a) SAARC Charter was signed on December 8, 1985 by its seven foundingmember countries Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal,Afghanistan and Maldives to enhance regional cooperation in various fields/sectorswithin the region.

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Agreement on South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA)

To enhance regional trade, SAPTA was signed on April 11, 1993 at Dhakato provide preferential tariff concession on regional imports of member countries.Later, the Agreement on South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) was signed duringthe 12th SAARC Summit held at Islamabad on January 6, 2004. The Agreementwas enforced w.e.f. July 1, 2006. Presently, SAARC Member States are in theprocess of reducing their Sensitive Lists under SAFTA. Under SAFTA, a Sub-Group on Non-Tariff Measures (NTMs) has also been established in order toeffectively address the issue of NTMs including Standards, Testing and Certification.

SAARC Member States also signed the SAARC Agreement on Trade inServices (SATIS) during the 16th SAARC Summit held at Thimphu, Bhutan onApril 28, 2010. The Agreement would open up new vistas of trade cooperationand further deepen the integration of the regional economies.

Pakistan-India Trade Normalization Process

Pakistan and India are in process of notinalizing bilateral trade relationsunder resumed Composite Dialogue. As a first step, Negative List of 1209 tarifflines has been notified. With the elimination of Negative List, complete tradenormalization with India will be in place subject to the removal of the Non-TariffBarriers by the Indian government.

Pakistan Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement (PSFTA)

Pakistan concluded a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Sri Lanka onAugust 1, 2002, which is effective since June. 12, 2005. Under the bilateral FreeTrade Agreement, both sides have agreed to establish a Free Trade Area throughelimination of tariffs on the movement of goods.

The future roadmap to enhance cooperation includes incorporation of thefollowing Chapters in the Agreement to be called as;

i. Trade in Services

ii. Investment

iii. Customs Cooperation

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Pakistan-Bangladesh Trade Relations

A MOU has been signed between the erstwhile Export Promotion Bureau,Pakistan (now TDAP) and Export Promotion Bureau of Bangladesh on February13, 2006 at Islamabad. Under the MoU, both countries had agreed to exchangeeconomic and commercial infonnation as well as assistance in organizing tradefairs and trade delegations. Under the said MoU, Export Promotion Bureau ofBangladesh has been providing a complimentary pavilion to TDAP at DhakaInternational Trade Fair (DITF) every year.

Trade Promotional Activities

As per its new export strategy, Trade Development Authority of Pakistanis putting efforts in broadening the base of Pakistan’s exports by upgrading exportpotential of products where Pakistan has competitive advantage and increasingtheir market share in traditional and non-traditional markets. SAARC is one of thepotential regions and TDAP has performed promotional activities in this region topromote Pakistan’s exports.

SAARC Trade Fairs

The details of dates and venues of the SAARC Trade Fairs held so far are givenbelow;

1. First SAARC Trade Fair New Delhi, 9-14 January 1996

2. Second SAARC Trade Fair Colombo, 8-15 September 1998

3. Third SAARC Trade Fair Karachi, 21-26 April 2001

4. Fourth SAARC Trade Fair Kathmandu, 25-29 October 2002

5. Fifth SAARC Trade Fair Dhaka, 27-31 December 2003

6. Sixth SAARC Trade Fair New Delhi, 6-10 January 2005

7. Seventh SAARC Trade Fair Karachi, 16-18 June 2006

8. Eighth SAARC Trade Fair Colombo, 28-31 August 2008

9. Ninth SAARC Trade Fair Thimphu, 11-14 September 2009

10. Tenth SAARC Trade Fair Kathmandu, 15-19 December 2010

11. Eleventh SAARC Trade Fair Dhaka, 30 March – 1 April 2012

12. Twelfth SAARC Trade Fair will be at Kulhudhuffushi, Maldives

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Trade Delegations

Pakistan sent trade delegations to various SAARC Member Countries.

1. Visit of APUBHMA trade delegation to Bangladesh May 2009.

2. Visit of TDAP’s trade delegation to Maldives and Sri-Lanka fromJuly 5-12, 2009

3. Visit of Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FCCI) trade

delegation to Sri-Lanka on August 12-21, 2009

4. Visit of trade delegation to Bangladesh on August 15-30, 2008

5. Visit of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry(FPCCI) delegation to Sri-Lanka on November 22-23, 2009

6. ‘Made in Pakistan’ Single Country Exhibition organized by RawalpindiChamber of Commerce & Industry on June 14-18, 2011 inBangladesh.

7. A delegation of Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry visited

India in December, 2011.

8. ‘Made in Pakistan Expo’ organized by Rawalpindi Chamber ofCommerce & Industry in March 2012 at Chandigarh, India.

9. ‘Lifestyle Pakistan’ Exhibition held in New Delhi April 12-16, 2012.

10. “Made in Pakistan Expo 2012” organized by FPCCI at Mumbai,India from August 31 to September 5, 2012.

11. TDAP participated in “Food and Grocery Fair and Conference”held from 12-13 December, 2012 at Mumbai-India.

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(b) Pakistan’s trade with SAARC Countries during the last four years isgive below:—

Value in US$ million———————————————————————————————————————————

2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-2012Region/Country ———————————————————————————————————

Export Import Export Import Export Import Export Import———————————————————————————————————————————Afghanistan 1397.5 93 1572 139.2 2336.7 172 2249.6 199.4Bangladesh 383.4 78.7 483.4 80.8 1015.5 79.7 633.7 65Bhutan 0 0.2 0 0.03 0 0 0 0.2India 319 1194.6 268.3 1225.5 264.3 1743.2 338.5 1507.3Maldives 5.6 0 4.2 0.1 4.5 0 5.3 0Nepal 0.7 1.1 0.7 1 0.6 1.9 1.4 1.8Sri Lanka 189.7 65.2 283.1 54.6 331.8 57.3 305.3 68.7———————————————————————————————————————————SAARC Region(Total) 2295.9 1432.8 2611 1501.2 3953.4 2054.1 3533.8 1842.4———————————————————————————————————————————

Pakistan’s detailed trade figures with SAARC Countries are at Annex-I.

(Annexure has been placed in the National Assembly Library)

15. *Ms. Shireen Arshad Khan:

Will the Minister f or Foreign Affairs be pleased to state:

(a) the total num ber of Pakistani prisoners in Syria, Egypt andTurkey at present; and

(b) the steps beng taken by the Government for their legalassistance?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar): (a) Thetotal numbers of Pakistani prisoners in Syria, Egypt and Turkey, at present are asunder:———————————————————————————————

Country Total Number ofName Prisoners/detainees

——————————————————————————————Syria 0Egypt 1Turkey 8

——————————————————————————————

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(b) The steps being taken by the government for their legal assistanceare as under:—

(i) A Special Cell on Overseas Pakistanis (SCOP), headed by DirectorGeneral (Overseas Pakistanis) was constituted in May, 2010 andDirector General (OP) was deputed as Liaison Officer. The complaintsreceived through relatives of our expatriates are processed incoordination with our Missions abroad.

(ii) Consular access is provided to the detainees/prisoners.

(iii) Our Missions provide the services of interpreters, whenever required.

(iv) Facilitate the deportation of detainees.

(v) Maintaining contacts with the local authorities regarding detention/imprisonment of Pakistanis.

(vi) Provision of facility of contacts to the prisoners and their visitingrelatives.

(vii) Transmission of detainees concerns to the concerned local authoritiesfor their redressal.

(viii) Release of Pakistani prisoners through payment of fines. In 2010-1192 prisoners were got released and in 2011-12 our Missions inKuwait, UAE & Saudi Arabia were authorized to pay fines of 30prisoners from PCW&E Fund.

16. *Mr. Sajid Ahmed:


(a) the names of government departments which monitor to explorenew trade markets;

(b) the performance shown by those departments during the year2011-12 till date; and

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(c) the names of countries with whom Pakistani exports havereduced during the last five years alognwith the reasons thereof?

Reply not received.

17. *Dr. Muhammad Ayub Sheikh:


(a) whether it is a fact that any Joint Venture Agreement has beensigned between the Pakistan Railways and National LogisticCell (NLC);

(b) if so, the benefits to be achieved by the Pakistan Railwaystherefrom?

Minister for Railways (Haji Ghulam Ahmed Bilour): (a) PakistanRailways is negotiating an agreement with National Logistic Cell (NLC), to repair21 locomotives. Out of these 16 will be of GMU-30 make and 5 Hitachi. NLCwill arrange finances for the repair of these locomotives, and Pakistan Railwayswill procure the spare parts and execute necessary repairs at its workshops. Thefinancial amount will be repaid to NLC through rebate in the freight charges ofconsignments booked for NLC and hauled by these locomotives.

(b) The benefit to P.R from this agreement will be that 21 ineffectivelocomotives will be repaired and 13 repaired locomotives will be used by NLCand 8 repaired locomotives shall be used by Pakistan Railways exclusively.

18. *Ms. Khalida Mansoor:

Will the Minister for Overseas Pakistan’s be pleased to state:

(a) the present status of the construction of new housing coloniesfor Overseas Pakistanis;

(b) the total amount received from Overseas Pakistanis for theconstruction of those housing colonies so far; and

(c) the total number of those Pakistanis who have sent said amountto Pakistan therefor alongwith the break-up of utilization fordevelopmental and non-developmental purposes?

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Minister for Overseas Pakistanis (Dr. Muhammad Farooq Sattar):(a) OPF is in process of development/construction of following two housingcolonies:—

1. OPF Valley Zone-V, Islamabad.

The size of scheme is 5000 Kanal. The contract for development ofinfrastructure has been awarded to M/S F.W.O. at total cost of Rs.2.404 billion in August, 2002. Up till now 75% work on 87% availableland has been completed at site. The development activities onremaining 13% land are in progress which are expected to becompleted in March, 2013.

2. OPF Housing Scheme, Phase-I Extension, Lahore.

The size of the scheme is 728 Kanals. The land acquired by LDAhas been denotified. Master plan has been submitted to LDA forapproval. The tendering process for development of the scheme isunder finalization. The development work is expected to becommenced in Feb., 2013.

(b) Total amount received from overseas Pakistanis is as under:—

i. OPF Valley Zone-V ISB Rs. 1411 million

ii. OPF Housing Scheme,Phase-I Extension Lahore Rs. 135 million

(c) Total number of allottee in these two schemes are as under:—

i. OPF Valley Zone-V, Islamabad — 1965

ii. OPF Housing Scheme,Phase-I Extension Lahore — 277

Breakup of expenditure up to 30-06-2012 is as under:—

i. OPF Valley Zone—V, IslamabadDevelopment Expenditure Rs.1667 million

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ii. Non Development/Supervision Expenditure Rs. 89 million Total: Rs.1756 million

iii. OPF Housing Scheme.Phase-I Extension Lahore

Development Expenditure Rs. NILNon DevelopmentExpenditure / Supervision Rs. 6.04 million

19. *Ms. Khalida Mansoor:


(a) the year-wise total quantity of used edible oil imported duringthe last five years;

(b) the names of countries/firms from where the said oil wasimported; and

(c) the criteria and procedure adopted alongwith the purposes andutilization thereof?

Reply not received.

20. *Rana Mahmood -ul- Hassan:


(a) whether it is a fact that the share of Pakistan in global tradehas reduced from 0.20 to 0.18 percent according to the statistics,of the World Trade Organization (WTO) released recently; if so,the reasons thereof; and

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

Minister for Commerce (Makhdoom Muhammad Amin Fahim):(a) Pakistan’s share in the World trade during 2011 slightly reduced in percentage

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terms from 0.193 percent in 2010 to 0.189 percent in 2011. However, in terms ofvalue Pakistan’s trade increased to US$ 69.346 billion during 2011 from US$59.217 billion in 2010.

Pakistan’s share in the global exports has slightly decreased in percentageterms from 0.14 percent in 2010 to 0.139 percent in the year 2011.However, invalue terms Pakistan’s exports has increased from US$ 21.41 billion during 2010to US$ 25.344 billion in the year 2011.

Pakistan’s share in the world imports also declined to 0.239 percent in2011 from 0.244 percent during 2010. But in value terms Pakistan’s import hasalso increased to US$ 44.012 billion in 2011 from US$ 37.807 billion in 2010.The year wise detail is given below:

PAKISTAN’S SHARE IN THE GLOBAL TRADE

Value in Billion US$———————————————————————————————————————————

Percentage Share Percentage Share Percentage Share in global Tradein global Exports in global Imports

————————————————————————————————————Pakistan Pakistan World Pakistan(Billion % (Billion % (Billion (Billion

Year US$) Share US$) Share US$) US$) % Share———————————————————————————————————————————

2007 17.838 0.127 32.59 0.228 28323 50.428 0.178

2008 20.323 0.126 42.329 0.256 32681 62.652 0.192

2009 17.523 0.140 31.668 0.249 25278 49.191 0.195

2010 21.41 0.140 37.807 0.244 30738 59.217 0.193

2011 25.334 0.139 44.012 0.239 36693 69.346 0.189———————————————————————————————————————————

Sources: WTO

(b) Measures adopted by Ministry of Commerce for enhancing tradeare given below:—

• European Union has announced tariff concessions on 75 productsto help Pakistan economy recover from losses caused by floods in2010, these concessions have become effective from 15 November2012 and will be available till 31st December 2013.

• European Union has recently change its criteria for its GSP+ scheme.As per the new inertia Pakistan will be eligible for duty free excess inEU for most of products of its interest from 01-01-2014.

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• Pakistan FTA with Malaysia was signed on November 8, 2007 andis operational from January 1, 2008. The FTA is the 1st bilateralAgreement between two Muslim Countries –Members of OIC. Thisagreement is Pakistan’s first comprehensive FTA incorporating Tradein Goods, Trade in Services, Investment and Economic Cooperationand Malaysia’s first bilateral FTA with any South Asian country.

• The Investment Chapter of the Pak- China FTA was re-negotiatedand the Protocol was signed on 15th October 2008. As a result,China specific industrial zones will be established in the country andthe products manufactured in the zones will get duty free access inChina.

• In order to expand the ambit of the existing Pakistan – Sri LankaFTA, the first round of negotiations between the two countries onComprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) was heldin November, 2008 in Sri Lanka. The objective of the meeting wasto review the implementation of the FTA and to address the concernsof the auto sector of Pakistan.

• The Agreement on Trade in Services between Pakistan and Chinawas signed on 21st February 2009. The Agreement is operationalfrom 10th October 2009.

• The Agreement on Trade and Economic Cooperation betweenPakistan and Ukraine was ratified by the Cabinet on 30th June, 2010.

• The second Joint Trade Committee (JTC) meeting between Pakistanand Australia was held in February 2010 in Islamabad. One of themajor achievements after the JTC meeting was the import RiskAnalysis of our mangoes by Australia.

• The SAARC Agreement on Trade in Services was signed by all themember states during the 16th SAARC Summit held in Bhutan on28-29 April, 2010.

• The negotiations for the Second Phase of Pak-China FTA have beencommenced. The first Meeting was held on 10-11 March 2011 inIslamabad.

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• An MoU was signed between Pakistan and Gulf Cooperation Councilin March 2011 to formally launch the Strategic Dialogue.

• The 5th round of Commerce Secretary Level Talks on Commercialand Economic Cooperation between Pakistan and India were heldon 27-28 April, 2011 in Islamabad. The Joint Statement containssignificant decisions regarding addressing tariff and non-tariff barriersto trade between the two countries.

• The Inaugural Session of the Pakistan – Vietnam Joint TradeCommission (JTC) was held on July 28-29-2011 in Hanoi, Vietnam.During the meeting, both sides agreed to strengthen business tobusiness cooperation and improve trade logistics between the twocountries.

• Pakistan and United States signed Trade & Investment FrameworkAgreement (TIFA) on 25th June 2003. The 5th TIFA Council meetingwas held at Islamabad on September 20, 2011. Issues related toinvestment, market access, the U.S Generalized System ofPreferences (GSP), trade promotion efforts and sector-specificinvestment challenges were discussed in the meeting.

• Pakistan and Indonesia have concluded a Preferential TradeAgreement in September, 2011. The Agreement was signed inFebruary 2012. The Agreement is likely to be implemented fromJanuary 1, 2013.

• An MoU was signed between the Ministry of Trade and ForeignEconomic Relations of Turkmenistan and the Ministry of CommerceGovernment of Pakistan in November, 2011.

• Pakistan being a member of Organization of Islamic Conference(OIC) signed the Agreement of Rules of Origin in September, 2008and the same was ratified by the Cabinet on 2nd December, 2011.The other agreements signed and ratified by OIC member countriesare Protocol on the Preferential Tariff Scheme for TPS-OIC(PRETAS) and Framework Agreement.

• Pakistan is also a Contracting Party of the Preferential TradeAgreement among the D-8 Muslim countries comprising Bangladesh,

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Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, and Turkey. The Cabinetin its meeting held on 8th December, 2011 approved the ratificationof the Agreement.

• The Inaugural session of Pakistan and New Zealand JTC was heldin March 2012 in Wellington. Various issues of market access werediscussed in the Meeting.

• The 3rd Pakistan-Australia JTC Meeting was held in Canberra on19-20 March 2012. The issues including technical trainings, tradepromotion and market access for our core products were discussed.

ISLAMABAD: KARAMAT HUSSAIN NIAZI,The 20th January, 2013. Secretary.

PCPPI—2055(13) NA—20-1-2013—700.

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49th Session

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SECRETARIAT

————

“UNSTARRED QUESTIONS AND THEIR REPLIES”

For Monday, the 21st January, 2013

(Originally Unstarred Question Nos. 40, 45 and 50 were set down foranswer during the 48th Session)

40. Ms. Qudsia Arshad:


(a) the year-wise total number of bullet proof vehicles imported bythe Government during the last three years;

(b) the name of persons to whom those vehicles have been allottedduring the said period;

(c) whether it is a fact that some individuals have been allowed toimport such vehicles without import duty;

(d) if the answer to part (c) above is in the affirmative, the reasonsto import such vehicles alongwith the total amount waived offin each case during the Said period?

Transferred to Revenue Division for answer on next Rota Day.

45. Dr. Darshan:


(a) whether it is a fact that there is a shortfall of employees belongingto Sindh and Balochistan in Pakistan Tobacco Board, Peshawar;if so, the reasons thereof; and

2

(b) the steps being taken or proposed to be taken to make up thesaid deficiency?

Reply not received.

50. Ms. Nighat Parveen Mir:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the year-wisetotal value of fruits and vegetables imported during the last five yearstill date?

Minister for Commerce (Makhdoom Muhammad Amin Fahim):Year-wise total value of fruits and vegetables imported during the last five yearsare as follows:———————————————————————————————

Years Total Value(Rupees in Millions)

——————————————————————————————Fruits

——————————————————————————————2007-08 69392008-09 87422009-10 97922010-11 97902011-12 11388.3

—————————————————————————————— Vegetables

——————————————————————————————2007-08 186032008-09 327282009-10 310542010-11 463152011-12 57419.9

——————————————————————————————Source: FBS

1. Ms. Qudsia Arshad:

Will the Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan be pleasedto state:

3

(a) the total area of Gilgit Baltistan at present; and

(b) the district-wise total population of Gilgit Baltistan at present?

Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan (Mian ManzoorAhmed Wattoo): (a) The total area of Gilgit-Baltistan at present is 72496 sq.kms

(b) As per census of 1998 the distract wise total population ofGilgit-Baltistan is as under:———————————————————————————————

S# Name of the District Population (in million)——————————————————————————————

1. Gilgit 0.147

2. Hunza-Nagar 0.098

3. Skardu 0.219

4. Diamer 0.133

5. Ghizer 0.121

6. Ghanchi 0.089

7. Astore 0.074

——————————————————————————————Total 0.881

——————————————————————————————

2. Ms. Nighat Parveen Mir:


(a) whether it is a fact that new appointments are being made inthe Pakistan Railways at present; if so, the reasons thereof; and

(b) the year-wise appointments made in the Pakistan Railways duringthe period from 15-3-2008 till date?

Reply not received.

4

3. Ms. Shaheen Ishfaq:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state whether thereis any proposal under consideration by the Leadership of theGovernment to visit Russia in the near future; if so, when it will beimplemented?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar): At themoment, no proposal is under consideration by the Supreme Leadership of theGovernment to pay a visit to the Russian Federation. Nonetheless, it may bestated that frequent high . level interactions between the two countries have becomethe hallmark of the Pakistan-Russia bilateral relations during recent times.

(i) The two Presidents have met as many as seven times over the lastfour-year period. These exchanges also include the bilateral visit ofPresident Asif Ali Zardari to the Russian Federation in May 2011.

(ii) During the same time period, four meetings have taken place between.the Prime Ministers of the two countries. The latest meeting tookplace on 05 November 2012 in Vientiane, Laos on the sidelines ofthe 9th Asia Europe Meeting Summit (ASEM-9). During the meeting,Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf extended an invitation to hisRussian counterpart, Mr. Dmitry Medvedev, to pay a visit to Pakistan.

4. Ms. Shaheen Ishfaq:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state the year-wisetotal amount spent by each Pakistani Embassy abroad during thelast five years alongwith the head-wise utilization thereof?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar): Theexpenditures incurred on Pakistan Embassy/ Sub-Mission in last five years underDemand No. 43 (Missions Abroad) are as under:—

Expenditure——————————————————————————————

S. # 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12———————————————————————————————————————————

1. 5,717,078,087 7,227,221,729 8,205,924,407 8,351,776,625 9,437,446,535

——————————————————————————————The head-wise and year-wise break-up are annexed. (A, B, C, D, E).

(Annexures have been placed in the National Assembly Library)

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5. Ms. Tasneem Siddiqui:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state the year-wisetotal number of prisoners released by the Government of Afghanistanand Pakistan separately during the period from 15-3-2008 till date?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar): (a) Theyear-wise total number of prisoners released by the Government of Afghanistanand Pakistan separately during the period from 15-3-2008 till date are as under:———————————————————————————————

Pakistani released 2008 50from Afghan 2009 25Prison / custody of 2010 60intelligence agency 2011 35

and police. 2012 70——————————————————————————————

Total 240——————————————————————————————

Released from 2009 2Bagram prison 2010 1

2011 22012 2

—————————————————————————————— Total 7

——————————————————————————————

(b) The record of Afghani prisoners released by the Government ofPakistan is held with the Ministry of Interior. Information is awaited.

6. Ms. Tasneem Siddiqui:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state the year-wisetotal number of prisoners released by Government of India andPakistan, separately during the period from 15-3-2008 till date?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar): India hasreleased 767 Pakistani civil/fishermen prisoners during the period from 15-3-2008todate. Whereas, Pakistan has released 1636 Indian civil/fishermen prisoners duringthe same period. Year-wise details are tabulated below:—

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——————————————————————————————Year Pakistani Prisoners Total Indian Prisoners Total

——————————————————————Civil Fishermen Civil Fishermen

——————————————————————————————2008 94 14 108 09 229 2382009 04 0 4 0 100 1002010 129 164 293 20 454 4742011 104 127 231 15 103 1182012 49 82 131 26 680 706——————————————————————————————Total: 380 387 767 70 1566 1636——————————————————————————————7. Ms. Tahira Aurangzeb:


(a) the location-wise hospital of the Pakistan Railways in the countryat present;

(b) the details of Doctors presently working in those hospitalsseparately, at present; and

(c) the medical facilities alongwith beds available in those heapitalsseparately at present?

Minister for Railways (Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour): (a) (b) & (c)

7

8. Ms. Tahira Aurangzeb:


(a) whether it is a fact that Government has decided recently totransfer ambassadors from various countries;

(b) if so, the time by which it will be implemented alongwith thedetails thereof?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar): (a) Transferand posting of various Ambassadors is an ongoing process. The recent transfers/appointments of Ambassadors have been decided since several Ambassadors

8

have either completed or are soon going to complete their tenure of posting inPakistan Missions abroad or are superannuating.

(b) There is no specific time frame. However, all Ambassadors areexpected to be in place in next few months.

9. Sheikh Salahuddin:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state the stepsbeing taken by the Government to resolve Kashmir issue atInternational Forums during the last four years till date?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar):

STEPS TAKEN BY GOVERNMENT OF PAKISTAN TO RESOLVEKASHMIR ISSUE AT INTERNATIONAL FORUMS DURING THE LASTFOUR YEARS

Pakistan’s principled position on Jammu and Kashmir dispute is based onthe UN Security Council Resolutions, which provide for the final disposition ofJammu and Kashmir in accordance with the will of the people to be determinedthrough a free and impartial plebiscite under the UN auspices. Pakistan upholdsthis position and is determined to extend full political, moral and diplomatic supportto the just cause of the Kashmiri people. Pakistan has been consistently highlightingthe Kashmir issue on all the important international forums including the UN GeneralAssembly, the OIC and The Human Rights Council.

Following is a brief account of Pakistan’s efforts on projecting the gravityof Kashmir dispute during the last four years:

Kashmir at the UN

Since United Nations is the largest international forum where any issuecan be brought, Pakistan has always kept great focus on the sessions of UNGeneral Assembly in order to highlight the Kashmir Cause. Over the last fouryears, Pakistan has invariably highlighted Kashmir in the addresses made by theHeads of the Pakistani delegations in UNGA. Pakistan delegations were led bythe Foreign Ministers in 2010 and 2011 and the President in 2009 and 2012.

9

Pakistan President Mr. Asif Ali Zardari during his debate on the 67thSession of the UN General Assembly in September 2012 stated: “Our principledposition on territorial disputes remains bedrock of our foreign policy. We willcontinue to support the right of the people of Jammu & Kashmir to peacefullychoose their destiny in accordance with the UN Security Council’s long-standingresolutions on this matter. Kashmir remains a symbol of the failures, rather thanstrengths of the UN system”. Addressing the UN General Assembly India’s ExternalAffairs Minister SM Krishna described President Zardari’s statement asunwarranted stating that Kashmir is an integral part of India.

Kashmir at the OIC

o The 36th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of OIC(CFM)was held in Damascus on 23-25th May, 2009.The Council tookserious note of the Indian intransigence on the issue of Kashmir. TheOIC Contact group on Kashmir also met on the sidelines of the 36thCFM.Pakistan’s delegation was led by the Minister for ForeignAffairs; Mr Shah Mehmood Qureshi.It was also attended by adelegation from the Parliamentary special Committee on Kashmirheaded by Mr. Lal Mohammad Khan.

o The meeting of the 37th OIC CFM was held in Dushanbe on 18th to20th May, 2010 adopted a resolution on Kashmir which wasproposed by Pakistan. Meeting of the OIC Contact Group onKashmir was also held on the sidelines of the CFM.

o The Foreign Minister of Pakistan co-chaired the meeting of the OICContact Group on Jammu and Kashmir on the sidelines of the 66thUNGA in New York on 21 September, 2011. During the meeting,she particularly discussed the issue of mass graves as highlighted inthe investigation report of the Jammu and Kashmir State HumanRights Commission and called upon the Government of India to bringto justice, those who were involved in such crimes.

o Annual Coordination Meeting of the OIC Foreign Ministers on thesidelines of the 66th UNGA also took note of the issue of unmarkedgraves at various places of North Kashmir and called for fair trial ofthose, involved in such heinous crimes.

o The 38th Session of Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) of OICwas held in Astana, Kazakhstan, from 28-30 June 2011. The CFM

10

passed Resolution upholding right to self determination of the peopleof Jammu and Kashmir. Meeting of the OIC Contact Group wasalso held on the sidelines of 38th CFM on 28 June 2011. This meetingwas chaired by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ms. HinaRabbani Khar.

o Fourth Extra Ordinary OIC Summit held in Makkah on 14th to 15thAugust 2012 expressed solidarity with the people of Kashmir.

o OIC Contact Group Meeting was held on the sidelines of the 67thSession of UN General Assembly in New York on 26 September2012. The meeting was attended by the OIC Secretary General,H.E. Professor Dr. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, Turkish Foreign MinisterH.E. Professor Dr. Ahmet Davutoglu and representative ofGovernment of Niger and Permanent Representatives of Saudi Arabiain New York. The Foreign Minister as leader of Pakistan delegationhighlighted the human rights violations in IoK and stressed the needof resolution of the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UNSecurity Council Resolutions.

o The issue of Jammu and Kashmir was raised at the AnnualCoordination Meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the OIC countriesheld on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly on 28 September2012. The Foreign Minister in her statement expressed her seriousconcerns at the human rights violation in IoK and that the discoveryof mass graves in Kashmir.

o The Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir met on 16 November2012 on the sidelines of the 39th Council of foreign Ministers inDjibouti, Republic of Djibouti. The meeting was attended by theForeign Minister and Heads of the Delegations of Niger, Saudi Arabiaand Turkey. The OIC Secretary General, H.E. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu,reaffirmed the principled position of the OIC in fully supporting thepeople of Jammu and Kashmir in their struggle to achieve theirlegitimate rights.

11

Kashmir at the Human Rights Council

Pakistan has regularly facilitated the True Representatives of KashmiriPeople at the Human Rights Council. The sessions of the Human Rights Councilare held thrice every year. Over the past four years Kashmiri representatives haveraised Human Rights Violations under various agenda items like (Promotion andProtection of all Human Rights, Civil, Political, Economic, Social and CulturalRights including the rights of Development.)

The UN. High Commissioner for Human Rights Ms Pillai visited Pakistanrecently. She was given a detailed briefing about the Human Rights Violationsbeing perpetrated by the Indian Authorities in Kashmir. She expressed seriousconcern on the Draconian Laws in Kashmir namely AFSPA, TADA and DAA.

Pakistan has made every effort to resolve the Kashmir issue at everyavailable International forum. Kashmir has been invariably discussed with India atthe Heads of State/Government Level meetings.

10. Sheikh Salahuddin:

Will the Minister for Foreign Affairs be pleased to state whether thecases of Pakistani workers who lost their lives due to electric shockat Baraiyda, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) during the year 2012are being prosecuted by the concerned Embassy in the Sharia Court,KSA; if so, the details thereof?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar): ThreePakistani nationals lost their lives due to electric shock at Buraiyada, Al-Qaseem,Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during the year 2012. The names of those Pakistaninationals are as under:—

(a) Abdul Waheed Shakir S/o Sain Muhammad(b) Muhammad Ikram S/o Mewa Khan(c) Muhammad Ijaz S/o Salih

FIR is registered in cases of death by the local police authorities in whichprima facie evidence exists pertaining to the involvement of some criminal intenti.e Murder/Qatal. These three Pakistani nationals died due to electrocution. Henceno FIR was registered by the local police authority nor is any case under trial inShariah Court.

12

Mr. Abdul Waheed Shakir S/o Sain Muhammad:

He came to Saudi Arabia as a “builder” to work with Mr. Farin BinSaleh al-Hanzi. However, he was working as an “AZAD” employee somewhereelse at his own behest in contravention of the local labour laws. According to thedocumentary record available with our Mission in Riyadh, his Iqama (Work Permit)was not issued and he was not registered with General Organization for SocialInsurance (GOSI). He died due to electrocution while working at a place awayfrom his actual employer on daily wages.

Under these circumstances, legal heirs of the deceased are not entitled toany insurance or death compensation. However, his legal heirs can only claiminsurance amount from State Life Insurance Corporation through the concernedoffice of Protectorate of Emigrants in Pakistan.

Mr. Muhammad Ikram S/o Mewa Khan:

He came to Saudi Arabia in 2011 as a “Networking Technician” inAl-Janahain Contracting Est-Abdul Rahman M. Al-Nemer, located at Buridah,Al-Qaseem, and died on 26-09-2012, due to electric shock. The documentaryrecord available in our Mission at Riyadh reveals that late Muhammad Ikram dieddue to electric shock during working hours while on duty of his employer. Themanagement of the company informed that the deceased was properly registeredwith GOSI, as mandated by local labour laws. The company has already initiatedhis case with the Insurance Company for obtaining the Death Compensation forthe legal heirs.

The legal heirs of late Ikram Khan are also entitled to claim the Insurancemoney from State Life Insurance Corporation through the concerned ProtectorateOffice in Pakistan.

Mr. Muhammad Ejaz S/o Salih:

He came to Saudi Arabia as a “Construction Worker” and died on 18-11-2012 due to electric shock. He was working away from his actual employerand died due to his own negligence- electrocution with main transmission line. Hewas also not registered with GOSI and therefore, his legal heirs are not entitled toany death compensation. However, his legal heirs can claim insurance amountfrom State Life Insurance Corporation through the concerned office of Protectorateof Emigrants in Pakistan.

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11. Muhammad Rehan Hashmi:


(a) the total number of employees working in Trade DevelopmentAuthority of Pakistan (TDAP) at present; and

(b) the total number of employees of TDAP working in PakistaniEmbassies abroad alongwith the details thereof?

Reply not received.

12. Dr. Imtiaz Sultan Bukhari:


(a) whether it is a fact that the Ministry has advertised posts ofvarious categories for recruitments in Peshawar Divisionrecently;

(b) whether it is also a fact that all posts of above category IV havebeen reserved for Khyber-Pakhtun Khawa (KPK) and FATA;

(c) whether it is further a fact that only posts in class IV have beenadvertised/earmarked for Mianwali and Attock;

(d) if the answers to part (a), (b) and (c) above are in the affirmative,the justification thereof?

Reply not received.

13. Mrs. Shagufta Sadiq:

Will the Minister for Railways be pleased to state the year-wise totalnumber of cases of substandard utilization of fuel in Railwaysregistered during the last five years alongwith the names of accusedpersons thereof?

Minister for Railways (Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour): No case hasbeen detected /registered regarding utilization of sub-standard fuel in Railwaysduring the last five years.

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14. Shaikh Rohale Asghar:


(a) the train wise income earned by Pakistan Railways from thecontracts of dining cars during the last five years; and

(b) whether the advertisements of said contracts were published innewspapers; if so, the names thereof?

Minister for Railways (Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour): (a) Thetrain-wise income earned by Pakistan Railways from the contracts of dining carsduring the last five years is given below:———————————————————————————————S. No. Train Year Amount——————————————————————————————

1. 1UP/ 2DN 2008-2009 Rs.2,044,000/-2009-2010 Rs.2,044,000/-2010-2011 Rs.2,044,000/-2011-2012 Rs.2,044,000/-2012-2013 Rs.7,161,786/-

2. 5UP/6DN 2008-2009 Rs.8,010,000/- Revoked by thecontractor on 7-7-2009

3. 7UP/8DN 2008-2009 Rs.6,059,000/-2009-2010 Rs.6,664,000/-2010-2011 Rs.6,664,000/-2011-2012 Rs.8,415,000/-2012-2013 Rs.9,256,500/-

4. 9UP/ 10DN 2008-2009 Rs.5,996,100/-2009-2010 Not contracted out during the year2010-2011 Not contracted out during the year2011-2012 Rs.9,033,786/-2012-2013 Rs.9,385,000/-

5. 13Up/14DN 2008-2009 Rs.5,840,000/-2009-2010 Rs.5,840,000/-2010-2011 Rs.5,840,000/-2011-2012 Rs.5,840,000/-2012-2013 Rs.9,225,000/-

——————————————————————————————

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——————————————————————————————S. No. Train Year Amount——————————————————————————————

6. 15UP/16DN 2008-2009 Rs.7,271,000/-2009-2010 Not contracted out during the year2010-2011 Rs.9,015,000/-2011-2012 Not contracted out during the year2012-2013 Not contracted out during the year

7. 17UP/18DN 2008-2009 Rs.4,562,5001-2009-2010 Rs.4,562,500/-2010-2011 Rs.10,265,060/-

Not contracted out during2011-2012 the year

Rs.7,080,000/-2012-2013

8. 23UP/24DN 2008-2009 Rs.1,460,000/-2009-2010 Rs.1,460,000/-2010-2011 Rs.1,460,000/-2011-2012 Rs.1,460,000/-2012-2013 Train service suspended

9. 27UP/28DN 2008-2009 Rs.4,380,0001-2009-2010 Rs.4,380,000/-2010-2011 Rs.4,380,000/-2011-2012 Rs.4,380,000/-2012-2013 Rs.4,199,909/-

10. 33UP/34DN 2008-2009 Train not in operation2009-2010 Rs.3,190,000/-2010-2011 Rs.4,015,000/-2011-2012 Rs.5,705,000/-2012-2013 Train service suspended

11. 39UP/40DN 2008-2009 Train not in operation2009-2010 Train not in operation2010-2011 Rs.8,820,560/- Revoked by the

contractor2011-2012 Not contracted out during the year2012-2013 Rs.6,600,000/-

——————————————————————————————

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——————————————————————————————S. No. Train Year Amount——————————————————————————————

12. 41UP/42DN 2008-2009 Rs.9,350,000/-

2009-2010 Rs.9,350,000/-

2010-2011 Rs.9,350,000/-

2011-2012 Rs.1,0475,000/-

2012-2013 Rs.11,522,500/-

13. 45UP/46DN 2008-2009 Rs.4,562,500/-

2009-2010 Rs.4,562,500/-

2010-2011 Rs.4,562,500/-

2011-2012 Rs.4,562,500/-

2012-2013 Rs.13,140,000/-

14. 101UP/102DN, 2008-2009 Rs.2,499,885/-

103UP/104DN, 2009-2010 Rs.2.499.885/-

105UP/106DN, 2010-2011 Rs.2,499,885/-

107UP/108DN, 2011-2012 Rs.2,499,885/-

109UP/110DN, 2012-2013 Rs.6,265,800/-

15. 111UP/112DN, 2008-2009 Rs.1 ,825,000/-

113UP/114DN 2009-2010 Rs.1,825,000/-

2010-2011 Rs.1,825,000/-

2011-2012 Rs.1,825,000/-

2012-2013 Not contracted out during the year——————————————————————————————

Grand Total Rs. 321,055,541/-——————————————————————————————

(b) The said contracts are given to private parties after pre- qualificationof firms. Notice for inviting applications for pre-qualifications are published in thepress. Auction is carried out amongst the pre-qualified parties. The names ofnewspapers in which Notice for pre-qualification appeared are Daily “Express”,Daily “Khabrain” & Daily “News”.

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15. Mr. Muhammad Riaz Malik:


(a) the names alongwith designations of employees working inPakistani Embassies/Foreign Missions abroad separately atpresent; and

(b) whether there is any proposal under consideration of theGovernment to reduce the number of those employees; if so, thedetails thereof?

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar): (a) A listcontaining names and designations of the employees belonging to the Ministry ofForeign Affairs, working in Pakistan Embassies/Foreign Missions abroad(Diplomatic Wing) is enclosed as Annexure “A”.

(b) The Ministry has no proposal under consideration concerningreduction of such employees as the Missions already have bare minimum staff.

(Annexure has been placed in the National Assembly Library)

16. Mr. Iqbal Mohammad Ali Khan:


(a) the year-wise total number of appointments made in the TradeDevelopment Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) during the last fiveyear, alongwith the criteria adopted therein;

(b) the total sanctioned posts of officers/official in TDAP alongwiththe province-wise details of vacant posts of all cadres at present;

(c) whether the said posts were advertised in any newspaper; if so,the details thereof; and

(d) the promotions made against the promotional quota during thesaid period?

Reply not received.

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17. Ms. Shireen Arshad Khan:

Will the Minister for Railways be pleased to state the incentivesexcluding salary being provided by the Pakistan Railways to itsemployees?

Reply not received.

18. Mrs. Munira Shakir:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the name of thedepartment of the Government which monitors and ensures thatInsurance Companies operating in the country are implementing termsand conditions made with their clients in letter and spirit?

Reply not received.

19. Mrs. Munira Shakir:

Will the Minister for Commerce be pleased to state the departmentwhich determine the quality of vegetables and fruits being importedfrom India at present?

Reply not received.

KARAMAT HUSSAIN NIAZI, Secretary.

ISLAMABAD:The 20th January 2013.

PCPPI—2055 (2013) NA—20-1-2013—700.

Parliament of Pakistan - NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SECRETARIAT … · 2015. 6. 11. · Pakistan Locomotive...

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