ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Utility Stores Corporation (USC) has planned to open new stores in remote areas to provide essential food commodities to the rural down strata population on reduced prices.
“We want to provide economic relief to the people belonging to middle and lower middle income people as well to create job opportunities for the population of remote areas of the country”, said Managing Director, USC Sultan Mehmood while talking to APP here.
He said that as a national institution, USC is fully committed to provide food items to the people in all four province including Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), the Federally Administrated Tribal Areas (FATA) and Gilgit Baltistan.
He added that the corporation would focus on Gilgit Baltistan and Chitral region by opening new franchises to facilitates the people of those areas.
Sultan Mehmood said now USC is operating 34 percent in the urban areas and 66 percent in the rural areas.
“We need more support from the government to compete with competitive private sector and facilitate the common masses, “he said.
He said the USC paid taxes worth of Rs 5.628 billion in 2013-14 and Rs.5.318 billion in 2012-13 while it contributed Rs.5.294 in 2011-12 in term of taxes to the national exchequer.
He added that there is need to exempt these taxes for financial self-reliance of the institution and compete in the market.
“We are not getting any funds from the government or from any other side and we manage the expenses from our own resources for 14,000 staff member salaries and other expenditure, “he said.
He said that now the institution is passing under the process of modernization and the whole system would be computerized across the country.
Source: APP
