PM Shehbaz Orders Strict Action Against Tax-Evading Sugar Mills

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed strict and indiscriminate action against sugar mills involved in tax evasion and under-reporting taxes.

A press release issued by the Prime Minister’s Media Wing stated that an important review meeting was held under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to discuss measures for improving tax revenues. During the meeting, the Prime Minister was briefed about the installation of video analytics and monitoring in the sugar industry.

The Prime Minister emphasized that improving the performance of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) through the use of technology is the government’s top priority. He added that the ongoing steps towards the digitization of FBR will benefit the national treasury by billions of rupees.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif further stated that stern action will be taken against tax defaulters, and those failing to pay taxes will be brought into the tax net. He emphasized that the digital transformation of the FBR would significantly improve revenue collection.

The Prime Minister also highlighted that the implementation of the strategy for revenue collection would improve once video analytics are installed in the sugar industry. These reforms, he said, would curb sugar hoarding and help stabilize prices in the market.

“Our priority is to ensure that sugar is made available to the public at affordable prices,” said the Prime Minister. He further instructed that regular monitoring of sugar stocks should be conducted to prevent any disruptions in the sugar supply chain.

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In addition, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed strict action against sugar mills involved in tax evasion or paying lower taxes. He reiterated that the FBR’s digitization efforts would yield significant benefits for the national economy.

The Prime Minister also instructed the FBR to complete the full digitization of the value chain at the earliest. He extended similar instructions for the video analytics systems for the cement and tobacco industries.

The meeting was attended by Federal Minister for Economic Affairs, Ahad Khan Cheema, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Ataullah Tarar, Minister of State for Finance, Ali Pervaiz Malik, and senior government officials.