The Senate Standing Committee on Science and Technology Wednesday passed the Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority’s (PSQCA) head office transfer bill by a majority vote.

The voting on the bill was conducted in the meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Science and Technology, held under the chairmanship of Senator Muhammad Shafiq Tareen, at the Parliament House.

The meeting discussed the bill for the transfer of the head office of Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority. Federal Minister for Science and Technology Shibli Faraz while briefing the committee said that the government wants to bring improvements in the authority’s working which requires moving its head to Islamabad from Karachi.

Senator Rukhsana Zuberi said that if head office is being brought to Islamabad to target Karachi, then it is wrong. She questioned if there was any guarantee that moving the head office of the company will reduce corruption. She also asked the committee to ensure whether the shifting of the head office clashes with the 18th amendment. Senator Kamran Murtaza also opposed the proposed bill and said that shifting of PSQCA head office would increase the expenses. The committee, however, passed the PSQCA head office transfer bill by a majority of three to two.

The meeting was also briefed on the appointment of heads of various organizations in the Ministry of Science and Technology on Management Pay (MP)-1 scale. The committee members objected to appointment of private sector experts on higher perks, stating that the bureaucracy will object to such appointments.

Shibli Faraz told the committee that many important institutions of the ministry were without heads for many years. The government wants business, and that is why experts from the industry have been hired. He said experts from the private sector can perform well for the betterment of these institutions. He added that bureaucrats can also apply for the MP-1 scale positions.

Source: Pro Pakistani