Government decides to close down steel mills

The government has made a decisive move to permanently close the Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM), marking the end of an era for the once-thriving industrial giant.

Following the cessation of its gas supply on June 30, the NSC, dormant since 2015, faced insurmountable challenges.

In a strategic shift, the Ministry of Industry and Production has allocated 700 acres of prime land to the provincial administration, which plans to establish its own steel manufacturing facility.

This decision comes amid efforts to repurpose an additional 4,500 acres of PSM’s land for specialized economic zones, signaling a new phase in industrial development.

Financial disclosures revealed staggering payroll expenditures, with annual disbursements reaching 3.1 billion rupees and cumulative salaries exceeding 32 billion rupees over the past decade.

Blaming its decline on political patronage and employee regularization mandates, PSM officials highlighted a 2010 directive that imposed a hefty 2 billion rupee burden for employee regularization.