Question mark over fate of Pakistan Tobacco Board assets

A question is doing the rounds these days about the ownership of research centres belonging to the Pakistan Tobacco Board (PTB) after the federal government’s decision to transfer the organisation’s control to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The board possesses properties spread over 484 kanals in KP, 654 kanals in Punjab and 160 kanals in Balochistan. It has no assets in Sindh. In KP, the PTB has a sprawling office and other facilities in Peshawar’s Hayatabad area, research stations in Mardan and Mansehra and a model farm in Buner. In Punjab, the board has a 400-kanal estate in Jampur, research stations in Okara and Gujarat, and a zonal office spread over two canals at Lahore’s Gulberg area. The board’s sole property in Balochistan is a research station in Pishin. In addition, it has numerous vehicles and an enviable infrastructure. The total number of sanctioned posts is 394, of which only 240 are functional. The other 154 are vacant.