ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Economy Watch (PEW) on Saturday demanded a strict action against hoarders and smugglers of urea. It lauded the decision of the government to import urea from China to calm prices in the market. The government has decided to import urea on an urgent basis to address the growing unrest among farmers in the country and bring stability to the urea market, said PEW Chairman Brigadier (retd) Muhammad Aslam Khan. Demand for urea in the country and the activities of profiteers and smugglers are increasing prompting goverenmnt to import urea from China and first consignment of 50,000 tons of urea will reach Pakistan in February which will improve the situation. Aslam Khan said that the production of urea in the country is about 600,000 tons. Last year, urea production was 634,000 tonnes, but 343,000 tonnes of urea was smuggled to neighbouring countries. He said that reforming the urea market ensure food security would be a better option than short-term measures like urea imports. Online
