LPG price hike unjust, unethical
Hitting masses for profit in biting weather cruelty
Islamabad: Jan 08
The Pakistan Economy Watch (PEW) on Sunday said recent hike in Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) prices is unjust and against the interest of masses braving severe weather.
Decision of upward revision of LPG prices from Rs 80857 to Rs 92188 per tonne by Pakistan Petroleum Exploration and Production Companies Association (PPEPCA) cannot be justified as there is no indication of any cost increase in the production, it said.
Moving price up by Rs 11331 per tonne for the sake of profit amounts to cruelty and against the ethics of business, said Dr. Murtaza Mughal, President of the PEW.
According to industry experts LPG production cost hardly cross Rs 22000 per tonne and addition of 16 per cent GST add 3520 to it, he said.
One tonne of LPG is sufficient to fill 85 cylinders of 11.8 kg each which should have resulted in hike of Rs 133 per cylinder which is not the case on ground, said Dr. Murtaza Mughal.
He said that around 75 per cent production of LPG is controlled by government owned OGDCL, PPL and Parco that proves that the hike was sanctioned by those who take pride in their pro-poor stance.
Besides adding to profits of state-run companies, any increase in the prices automatically adds billions to the profits of private players like Attock Group, Hashwani Group and JJVL, he added.
He said that there should be some check on the moves of LPG producers who are playing havoc with masses in biting winter when demand is increased by around 700 tonnes per day to 2500 tonnes.
Prices is regularly been revised upward while local production remain stagnant at 900 tonnes, he informed.
He said that politically well-connected JJVL, the only company allowed to extract LPG from pipelines of SSGC may not be able to continue operations beyond March 2012 as its production has already declined from 450 tonnes per day to 150 tonnes.
He asked the CJP to take note of the situation and intervene in the interest of masses, especially those living in the remote areas like Gilgit-Blatistan, Chitral and Fata.
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Dr. Murtaza Mughal
Cell: 0321-5157671
President Pakistan Economy Watch
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