ISLAMABAD, Oct 20 (APP):Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan told the Senate on Tuesday that Pakistan Post was facing an annual loss of around Rs12 billion, which could rise to Rs18 billion to Rs19 billion if pension expenses were included.
Replying to a question by Senator Shahadat Awan, he said that the government was preparing a policy to reduce the department’s costs. Options under consideration included reducing its workforce or privatising the service, and a detailed plan would be presented to the House later, he said.
The minister said that Pakistan Post had 9,707 units across the country, including 2,887 departmental post offices and 6,735 extra-departmental offices, along with 85 formations. It listed a province-wise staff strength of 15,051, while the minister said the department currently had around 22,000 employees.
Aleem Khan said staff expenses accounted for a large part of the department’s costs. He added that recruitment and staffing followed provincial quotas, with shares distributed among the provinces according to the prescribed criteria.
Source: APP (Associated Press of Pakistan)
