Senate Body On Defence Production Reviews Mission Role, Organizations Structure Of Ministry

A meeting of the Senate on Defence Production was held here Monday to review the mission, role and organizational structure of the Ministry of Defence Production and its quantum of exports.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 16th Jul, 2018 ) :A meeting of the Senate on Defence Production was held here Monday to review the mission, role and organizational structure of the Ministry of Defence Production and its quantum of exports.

The meeting held here in the Parliament House under the chair of Lt General (Retd) Abdul Qayyum also reviewed future vision of the Ministry of Defence Production, including its short and long term goals and broad achievements of the current financial year.

The committee was apprised that besides other weapons Heavy Industries Taxila (HIT) had recently manufactured 16 Al-Khalid tanks and 36 T-80UD tanks. The officials of Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) Kamra told the committee that PAC was manufacturing 24 Super Mushshak aircraft annually adding that these crafts were also being supplied to other countries.

The committee was told that Mirage Rebuild Factory (MRF) of PAC had contributed Rs 211.70 million to the national exchequer.

The PAC officials told the committee that they were trying to provide aircraft at the international cost. They said the price of an aircraft was $7.547 million. They said that around $217.14 million were saved through the overhauling of aircraft and their accessories.

The committee chairman underlined the need to make companies capable of generating profit. He said local production would have to be increased to make country less dependent on imports.

The POF officials told the committee that POF had achieved its 97% targets in the last five years. They said that POF had 14 factories and it was according top priority to meet the needs of the armed forces of Pakistan. They said that POF had been participating in weapons exhibition in the US for the last three years, adding five thousand different sort of weapons were being sold to the US annually.

The officials of Pakistan Military Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (MVRDE) told the committee that due to the local production Rs 249 million were saved. For the next five years, they said a target had been set to save Rs 200 to Rs 290 million.

The committee in its recommendations underlined the need for promotion and autonomy of defence production sector. It said that board members of different institutions of defence production sector should be financially independent and have freedom to make decisions to work in the field of research and development.

The committee also recommended that Machine Tool Factory should be part of Ministry ofDefense Production, details of Ministry of Defence Production's capacity should be highlighted through the media and immediate implementation on Gwadar Shipyard plan should be made. It also recommended that Ministry of Defence Production should have its own budget.