ISLAMABAD: Despite clear instructions from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, only 22 brands of cigarettes were found with track-and-trace stamps (TTS), out of a total of 477 brands, selling at the retail stage.
According to a survey by the Institute for Public Opinion Research (IPOR), the number of cigarette brands sold at retail level jumped 66% to 477 last year. Of these, only 22 brands have TTS stamps, while 14 brands are sold with or without stamps. Meanwhile, 121 locally manufactured brands lack TTS stamps. Notably, 320 smuggled cigarette brands are sold without TTS stamps at retail level.
These findings of a survey undertaken by the IPOR were shared with the media here on Saturday. The Institute arranged a policy discussion to present findings from its nationwide study titled “Track and Trace Compliance in the Tobacco Industry – (Volume II)”, revealing significant regulatory gaps in compliance with the Federal Board of Revenue’s Track and Trace System.
Only 49 per cent were fully compliant with the TTS and related regulatory requirements, while 51pc were compliant brands. Among the 49pc non-compliant brands, 46pc are smuggled, and 54pc are locally manufactured but they did not pay the duties (DNP). In rural areas, 56pc brands are non-compliant, and 44pc are compliant. In urban areas, 42pc brands are non-compliant, and 58pc are compliant. Compliance with the minimum legal price (MLP) of Rs162.25 remained weak, with only 53 smuggled brands and 10 locally manufactured non-compliant brands selling above the legal threshold. Despite retailer awareness of the TTS regime, enforcement at the point of sale remained limited, with only 40pc of retailers reporting any difficulty in selling non-compliant brands.
On this occasion, Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kiani highlighted the government’s commitment to enforcing the ‘track-and-trace system’ in the tobacco sector. The government, the minister said, will intensify crackdowns on illegal cigarette brands and focus on enforcing regulations in this sector. Non-compliant brands will be brought within the legal framework, and monitoring and enforcement at the GLT (Green Leaf Threshing) stage have already been implemented. He also noted that retail outlets fall under the jurisdiction of provincial governments, which now have powers to take action against sellers of illegal cigarettes. Warehouses and transportation channels of the tobacco sector are also being monitored.
The event commenced with a presentation of the study findings by Tariq Junaid, Executive Director of IPOR, who outlined the scale and nature of non-compliance observed across the country. Drawing on data collected from 1,520 retail outlets across 38 markets in 19 districts, he highlighted that 51pc of cigarette brands available at the point of sale were non-compliant with one or more government-mandated requirements, including the absence of track-and-trace stamps, violations of the minimum legal price (MLP), and missing graphical health warnings. The findings showed that non-compliant brands largely comprised of smuggled and locally manufactured duty-not-paid cigarettes.
Dr Nasir Iqbal, fiscal policy expert and registrar at the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, discussed the findings in the broader context of fiscal discipline and regulatory governance. He stated that persistent noncompliance reflects deeper institutional coordination challenges and stressed the need to align enforcement mechanisms with broader public finance and governance reforms.
