Top Story May 4, 2021 ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Finance Shaukat Tarin has directed the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) to ensure data collection for prevailing prices of different commodities from Ramazan Saasta/Saulahat Bazaar for wide coverage. This directive has created an awkward situation for the PBS because it was mandated to collect the prices under defined methodology finalised through rebasing exercise and any change in methodology would distort the whole data of collection process for calculating inflation figures. Although, the PBS officials are tight-lipped and no one was ready to say anything on the record, insiders say that the PBS was left with no other option but to refer this issue towards its high-powered technical committee and then go back to the National Price Monitoring Committee (NPMC) with its response in line with the recommendations finalised by this technical committee on how the directives of the finance minister could be incorporated for data collection on CPI-based figures.