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The federal government has decided to permanently shut down Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM), while the Sindh government plans to establish its own steel mills on the PSM’s land.
On June 30, hopes for PSM’s revival suffered a setback when its gas supply was terminated. This decision dealt a significant blow to PSM, which has been non-operational since 2015.
The Federal Secretary for Industries and Production said that the Ministry of Industries and Production has offered 700 acres of land for the new mills to the Sindh government. Consequently, the Sindh government will proceed to establish a new steel plant.
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Moreover, it was revealed last year that apart from using 700 acres for industrial purposes, 4,500 acres of PSM’s land will be leased for Special Economic Zones.
Meanwhile, Chief Financial Officer Arif Sheikh disclosed that PSM’s annual payroll amounts to 3.1 billion rupees, with a total of 32 billion rupees disbursed in salaries over the past decade. He attributed the downfall of PSM to political hiring and the regularization of employees.
According to PSM officials, in 2010, the government mandated the regularization of 4,500 employees, resulting in an additional cost of 2 billion rupees.