Cabinet Allows Onion, Tomato Import From Iran, Afghanistan.

ISLAMABAD -- Since the calamitous monsoon floods have sent food prices skyrocketing, the federal cabinet has approved the import of onions and tomatoes from Iran and Afghanistan.

'The approval was taken from the federal cabinet through a circulation summary, but the decision has not been taken to import tomatoes and onions from India,' said Minister for Commerce Naveed Qamar while briefing the media about the decisions taken by the cabinet that met here yesterday.

The cabinet has also approved tax exemption on onion and tomato which will be till 31 December 2022.

The minister said, 'there is pressure in the market due to the increase in the prices of vegetables, so import from these two countries has been allowed, while tax exemption will be given for the import of tomatoes and onions.'

He said that the import from Iran and Afghanistan will be done by the private sector for which the government will play a facilitating role. He further said that there are issues related to import from India and the decision will be taken after consultation with all the stakeholders.

In this regard, Minister for Finance Miftah Ismael tweeted, 'More than one international agency has approached the govt to allow them to bring food items from India through the land border. The govt will take the decision to allow imports or not based on supply shortage position, after consulting its coalition partners and key stakeholders.'

The food ministry has asked the Federal Board of Revenue to waive off taxes and levies on onion and tomato imports for the next three months.

'These measures are aimed at ensuring the supply of essential commodities in the market and stabilise prices,' says the Ministry of National Food Security and Research in a statement.

It may be noted here that the price of onions had shot up by more than five times. The ministry had taken...