Feat: Port Qasim funds surges in 5 years

Islamabad: The total funds of Port Qasim Authority (PQA) have surged remarkably during last five years as the figure touches Rs 8.906 billion at the end of last fiscal against Rs 2.776 billion in 2000.

This total includes Rs 2.556 billion current account balance with banks and an investment of Rs 6.349 billion. The current account balance with banks and investment of the PQA were Rs 360 million and 2.415 billion respectively at the end of fiscal 1999-2000.

Only in one year-from June 2004 to June 2005-the total funds of the PQA raised by some 3 billion, said an official document.

According to the document, the total funds of the PQA were Rs 5.866 billion with an amount of Rs 3.971 billion as the current account balance with banks and also an investment of Rs 1.894 billion on June 30, 2004.

The PQA presented the document to the Senate Standing Committee on Ports and Shipping that met here on Tuesday with Senator Ghulshan Saeed in the chair. Business Recorder also obtained a copy of it.

The document said that out of the total investment of Rs 1.894 billion on June 30, 2004 Rs 416 million was in the form of regular income certificates (RIC) invested in the National Savings Centre (NSC) at the rate of 16 percent.

An amount of Rs 250 million was deposited with the Habib Bank Limited (HBL) at 2.50 percent and Rs 450 million were invested with the Pak Kuwait Investment at 3.75 percent.

While Rs 778 million was deposited in various banks as a short-term investment on an interest rate ranging between 0.8 and 18 percent, the document revealed.

The PQA submitted the document to the committee in defence of an objection the panel raised on it in its meeting held on May 25 last year.

According to the minutes of the said meeting, the committee asked the authority as to why it invested an amount of Rs 5 billion in various commercial banks on a marginal rate of 0.99 percent.

'The information doesn't reflect the correct position. The PQA has not invested Rs 5 billion at 0.99 percent on long-term basis,' the document said.