Pindi cracks down on sugar hoarders
During inspections at various locations, 139 violations were reported, resulting in fines totaling Rs761,000, the registration of two FIRs, the arrest of 39 individuals, and the sealing of 33 premises.
Rawalpindi district reported 64 violations, leading to Rs542,500 in fines, two FIRs, 28 arrests, and the sealing of 26 businesses. In Attock, 22 violations resulted in Rs. 89,000 in fines, 10 arrests, and 2 premises sealed.
Jhelum witnessed 26 violations, with Rs44,000 in fines and five establishments sealed. In Chakwal, eight violators were fined a total of Rs64,000. Murree authorities found 19 violations, imposed Rs. 21,500 in fines, and arrested one individual.
Rawalpindi Commissioner Aamir Khattak has directed all Deputy Commissioners to ensure that sugar mills adhere to government-notified prices and that a steady supply chain is maintained.
He emphasised that the crackdown on price manipulators must be intensified, and warned that "sugar mafias" will not be allowed to exploit consumers.
Magistrates have been instructed to stay active in the field and to carry out strict, impartial enforcement against retailers charging above the official price.
Arrests must be made wherever there is a breach of the notified rates. Additionally, DC counters have been ordered to ensure the availability and quality of all essential commodities.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
9 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Five die in firing on Tirah protesters
Listen to article Five people died and 17 others sustained injuries when protesters were fired upon during a protest outside a military installation against the killing of a girl in the Tirah Vally of the Khyber district in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), tribal elders stated on Sunday. The protest ended after negotiations between tribal elders and security officials. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and K-P Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur condemned the shooting at the Bagh Maidan area of Tirah Valley. Tension gripped the area after the death of a 10-year-old girl the other day. Following the incident, the victim's relatives and local citizens reached the main gate of the Brigade Headquarters this morning to protest. The protesters shouted slogans against the incident and set a dispensary on fire. In the meanwhile, the shooting broke out in which three people died on the spot. Later two more injured succumbed to their wounds while on way to a hospital. Police sources said that 17 injured were taken to a local hospital but six of them were later shifted to Peshawar hospitals and seven to Orakzai district. Fifteen injured were identified as Ajmal, Abdul Halim, Ayub Khan, Siraj, Jartaj, Baitullah, Aamir Hassan, Rehmanullah, Muhammad Sadiq, Nazar Muhammad and Abu Bakar — all residents of Zakhakhel — Khan Zeb and Muhammad Javed of Shlobar; and Sher Zaman, Qasim, and Saeed Khan of Malk Din Khel. Later, the tribal elders met with security officials and presented their demands: case against those involved in the death of the girl; vacation of the occupied houses of local citizens, end to unnecessary harassment at the security check posts and financial assistance to the families of the deceased. The security forces' agreed to Rs1.5 million compensation to the families of each deceased and Rs200,000 assistance to each injured. After a partial agreement on the demands, the protesters ended the protest, and the situation started to return to normalcy. In Islamabad, meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed grief over the martyrdom of innocent and peaceful citizens due to the firing from Fitna al-Khawarij and directed the authorities concerned to provide immediate medical assistance to the injured. K-P Chief Minister Gandapur also expressed deep sorrow and grief over the Tirah incident and announced financial assistance of Rs10 million for the heirs of each deceased and Rs2.5 million for each injured, according to an Express News report. The chief minister called a Peshawar Jirga, consisting of tribal elders and public representatives so that local sentiments and concerns could be heard. He directed the district administration and the institutions to strengthen public communication and maintain order. Gandapur said that a series of jirgas of tribal elders would start from next week at the divisional and then provincial levels. National Assembly member from the area Iqbal Afridi and K-P Assembly member Abdul Ghani Afridi condemned the incident. (WITH INPUT FROM APP)
Business Recorder
10 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Crackdown on human traffickers, illegal currency networks launched
ISLAMABAD: In a series of coordinated operations across multiple regions, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested 10 suspects involved in human trafficking, visa fraud, and illegal currency exchange. The crackdown was carried out on the directives of FIA Director General Rafat Mukhtar Raja, as part of an intensified campaign to dismantle smuggling and financial crime networks operating across the country. FIA Multan Zone arrested three individuals, including Feroze Qaiser Sagu, a most-wanted human smuggler. Other arrested suspects include Muhammad Azam and Muhammad Wazir. The trio allegedly defrauded citizens by promising employment abroad, extracting large sums of money without delivering. Feroze Qaiser, apprehended in Khanewal, has nine cases registered against him in the Multan Zone and additional charges in Faisalabad. He reportedly scammed over Rs. 8.2 million from victims by offering fake job placements in Dubai and Saudi Arabia. Muhammad Azam is accused of defrauding Rs. 600,000 under the pretence of employment in Azerbaijan. Muhammad Wazir allegedly extorted Rs. 2.36 million from citizens for promised jobs in the UAE. FIA Lahore Zone conducted raids in Lahore and Islamabad, arresting Naveed Tahir and Zubair Muhammad, both charged with visa fraud. Naveed Tahir allegedly took Rs. 1.68 million from a citizen, promising a job in Lithuania Zubair Muhammad is accused of swindling Rs. 700,000 under the guise of securing a US visa. Both suspects failed to provide the promised visas and had gone into hiding before being apprehended. In another significant operation, FIA Balochistan Zone arrested five individuals — Akmal Khan, Saifullah, Basheer Ahmed, Abdul Qayoom, and Abdullah — involved in illegal currency exchange and Hawala/Hundi operations in Quetta and Chaman Authorities seized a large sum of currency during the raids, including: Rs. 684,000 in Pakistani rupees 230.5 million Iranian Rials over 135,000 Afghanis 700 US dollars, 200 Saudi Riyals, and 150 Australian Dollars. Investigators also recovered cheque books, receipts, and bank slips linked to Hawala operations. The suspects were allegedly operating without proper licenses and failed to explain the source of the recovered funds. All suspects have been taken into custody and investigations are ongoing. According to the FIA spokesperson, the agency remains committed to a zero-tolerance policy against human trafficking, visa fraud, and illegal financial operations.
Business Recorder
11 hours ago
- Business Recorder
FC personnel deployed to monitor GLT units in KP
ISLAMABAD: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Member Inland Revenue (Operations) Dr Hamid Ateeq Sarwar has said that around 144 personnel of Frontier Constabulary force have been deployed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to regulate/ monitor Green Leaf Threshing units, to strengthen enforcement for checking massive evasion in tobacco sector. During the last meeting of the Public Accounts Committee, Dr Sarwar stated that two platoons of FC have been deployed at 13 GLT units for the purpose of enforcement. There are only around 13 GLTs in Pakistan, all fully traceable, making them the most logical taxation choke point. In contrast, there are over 450,000 retail outlets, selling cigarettes and more than 50 cigarette factories – primarily in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) and Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) – where enforcement at post-processing levels is far more challenging. FBR to strictly monitor tobacco movement The FED at GLTs, fully traceable processing units—is a key tax enforcement mechanism designed to curb revenue leakage and illicit cigarette manufacturing. By documenting actual volumes processed by manufacturers, the system ensures declared production aligns with tax liabilities, strengthening the national economy. Unprecedented excise increase in recent years on the legitimate cigarette manufacturing companies and too low advance FED in previous years has led to the illicit sector to grow to more than 56% of the market. This increase has been fuelled by smuggled cigarette brands. FBR needs to analyse how much tobacco was processed at GLTs and how much adjustable FED was collected from cigarette manufacturers and how much of this adjustable FED was actually adjusted against the final liability. FBR also needs to check how the GLT processing corresponds with the leaf buying of these manufacturers. Sources told Business Recorder that the country's tax potential from the cigarette sector exceeds Rs 600 billion annually. The two multinational companies that hold 44% of the market paid Rs 292 billion in taxes. Contrary to this, more than 40 local manufacturers controlling the remaining 56% of the market paid a meagre Rs 5 billion. Over Rs 300 billion in tax revenue, more than the federal allocations for education and health combined, has disappeared into the black market. FBR Chairman Rashid Mahmood Langrial recently admitted that over 90% of the cigarette sector operates outside the formal tax system. The Track and Trace System, introduced to enforce compliance, is failing. Only 19 of 413 registered brands are compliant. The government has proposed deploying Frontier Constabulary units in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to regulate Green Leaf Threshing, signalling the extraordinary scale of the breakdown in civilian enforcement mechanisms. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
