{"id":57074,"date":"2025-12-26T10:10:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-26T10:10:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/?p=57074"},"modified":"2025-12-26T10:10:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-26T10:10:08","slug":"rs135-billion-hazardous-petroleum-scandal-of-quetta-action-against-two-serving-two-retired-officers-substandard-solar-panels-inverters-batteries-posing-safety-risks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/rs135-billion-hazardous-petroleum-scandal-of-quetta-action-against-two-serving-two-retired-officers-substandard-solar-panels-inverters-batteries-posing-safety-risks\/","title":{"rendered":"Rs135 Billion Hazardous Petroleum Scandal of Quetta ! Action against Two serving Two retired Officers ! Substandard Solar Panels, Inverters, Batteries Posing Safety Risks"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"\"From the Parliament of Pakistan <\/strong><\/div>\n
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Islamabad : Staff Reporter – The Senate Standing Committee on Science and Technology held an extensive discussion on critical issues including pre-shipment testing policy, smuggling of hazardous food items, the Quetta petroleum scandal, quality control and enforcement mechanisms, solar panel testing, and ongoing institutional reforms.<\/strong><\/h5>\n
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The committee met at Parliament House under the chairmanship of Senator Kamil Ali Agha. The meeting was attended by Senators Husna Bano, Dr. Muhammad Aslam Abro, Dr. Afnan Ullah Khan, and Saeed Ahmed Hashmi, along with the Federal Minister for Science and Technology, Khalid Hussain Magsi, Secretary Ministry of Science and Technology, Chairman Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC), Director General Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA), Chairman Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR), and other senior officials.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The Secretary Ministry of Science and Technology briefed the Committee on the completion of investigations into the Rs135 billion hazardous petroleum products scandal in Quetta<\/strong>. He informed that disciplinary proceedings were initiated against two serving officers, while cases of two retired officers were referred to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on October 15. Expressing concern over delays, the Committee directed the FIA to submit its response within ten days.<\/div>\n
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The government, in Aug 2024, uncovered a staggering Rs135 billion scam involving the import of a highly inflammable and dangerous petrol adulterant, marketed as high-quality petrol. This scheme has damaged car engines and caused significant financial losses to both consumers and the national treasury.<\/div>\n
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The importers, operating through the Taftan-NLC Dry Terminal, were bringing in Light Aliphatic Hydrocarbon Solvent\u2014a hazardous petroleum product\u2014and selling it as petrol with the complicity of customs officials and laboratory personnel, according to official documents. A test check on the importers found that 26 out of 36 addresses were fake.<\/div>\n
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Customs Intelligence initially unearthed the scandal in May but it remained buried in official files until July 29th, when the Prime Minister\u2019s Office intervened and ordered an immediate halt to the illegal activities.<\/strong><\/div>\n
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The Committee discussed the mandatory testing of solar panels. The Secretary informed that a Korea-assisted laboratory will soon become operational, capable of conducting at least 46 different tests on solar panels.<\/div>\n
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Members raised concerns over the influx of substandard solar panels, inverters, and batteries,<\/strong> posing environmental and consumer safety risks. The Committee agreed that comprehensive testing is essential to protect consumers.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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PSQCA officials briefed the Committee on standards for food, non-food, and electrical materials. They informed that nicotine testing standards have recently been introduced and that licenses are suspended or cancelled in cases of violations.<\/div>\n
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Regarding tea whitener,<\/strong> officials clarified that it meets PSQCA standards, contains no nutritional value, and does not pose health risks within approved limits, despite concerns raised by members over chemical usage.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The Chairman PCSIR<\/strong> informed the Committee that the federal cabinet has approved the implementation of pre-shipment testing<\/strong> at borders; however, the operational mechanism is yet to be finalized.<\/div>\n
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The Federal Minister for Science and Technology emphasized that once testing is completed, consignments should be cleared within 15 to 25 days, noting that certain materials must be moved within this timeframe due to their sensitive nature. Committee members expressed serious concern over delays, warning that prolonged detention of consignments could result in financial losses and pose health risks.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The Committee was briefed that substandard betel nut (supari) and gutka are being smuggled into the country through both sea and land routes. The Federal Minister and members highlighted that spoiled supari and gutka pose severe public health risks, including cancer.<\/div>\n
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Senator Dr. Afnan Ullah Khan called for a complete ban on gutka consumption, noting its adverse health impacts. The Chairman PCSIR stressed the need for stringent checks at the supply stage, stating that illegal consignments are often transported from coastal areas to factories before reaching consumers.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The Federal Minister clarified that factory inspections fall under the mandate of PSQCA. Committee members raised concerns that inspections often result in clearance of illegal material instead of effective enforcement. The Committee was also informed about adulteration in spices such as turmeric and the addition of harmful substances in products like kohl (surma).<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Chairman PEC, Engineer Waseem Nazir, briefed the Committee on institutional reforms, stating that all transfers were carried out strictly on merit and that \u201cSmart PEC\u201d initiatives have been launched. He informed that digital services have been introduced in collaboration with NADRA, enabling online registration and issuance of engineering cards through Pak-Identity.<\/div>\n
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Entire university batches are now being registered online, alongside organizational restructuring and development of professional training programs.<\/div>\n
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He further informed that PEC has launched a Generative Artificial Intelligence course for 45,000 engineers, with 15,000 already trained. A Chartered Project Directors course is scheduled to commence in March\u2013April 2026. Mutual recognition agreements for engineers have been signed with China, with similar accords planned with Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.<\/strong><\/div>\n
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Additionally, a Graduate Engineer Trainee Program has been launched, offering six-month paid training with a monthly stipend of Rs. 50,000.<\/div>\n
Solar Panel and Inverter Testing:<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Concluding the meeting, the Committee emphasized strict enforcement of quality standards, timely implementation of approved policies, transparency in investigations, and enhanced coordination among regulatory bodies to safeguard public health, consumer rights, and national interests.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From the Parliament of Pakistan Islamabad : Staff Reporter – The Senate Standing Committee on Science and Technology held an extensive discussion on critical issues including pre-shipment testing policy, smuggling of hazardous food items, the Quetta petroleum scandal, quality control and enforcement mechanisms, solar panel testing, and ongoing institutional reforms. The committee met at Parliament […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":57082,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[83],"tags":[7845,456,7847,1088,7849,1178,7846,1910,5036,7848],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57074"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57074"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57074\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57084,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57074\/revisions\/57084"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57082"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57074"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57074"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57074"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}