ISLAMABAD: The government approved a Rs20 billion “special allocation” on Thursday for Operation Azm-i-Istehkam, a major initiative launched three months ago to combat terrorism and extremism. This decision was made during a meeting of the cabinet’s Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), which also authorized the export of 100,000 tonnes of sugar while exempting sugar mills from responsibility for domestic price increases.
Presided over by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, the ECC sanctioned supplementary grants totaling Rs2.23 billion for security forces. Of this, Rs1.95 billion was allocated to the Frontier Corps Balochistan (South) for security expenses related to the Reko Diq project, and Rs276.25 million to the Frontier Corps Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (North) for project implementation letters (PILs).
Operation Azm-i-Istehkam, announced on June 22 following a Central Apex Committee meeting of the National Action Plan, aims to deploy comprehensive military, diplomatic, legislative, and socio-economic resources to address terrorism and extremism. The operation has faced strong criticism from opposition parties, including PTI, JUI-F, and the Awami National Party. The KP chief minister also denied discussions about the operation during the apex committee meeting. In response, the government clarified that the campaign would not involve a large-scale military operation or mass displacement of locals.
In addition to the security allocation, the ECC granted a major concession to sugar mills, approving the export of an additional 100,000 tonnes of sugar. The decision removed the requirement for sugar mills to be held accountable for local market price increases, a condition previously linked to export permissions. Mills had lobbied against this condition, arguing that market forces were beyond their control.
The ECC also extended the export period from 45 to 60 days from the date of quota allocation and required that export proceeds for sugar destined for Afghanistan be received in advance through banking channels. For other destinations, proceeds can be received via letters of credit within 60 days of the LC’s opening. The committee will monitor the market situation monthly and review the conditions as necessary.
