Rational approach for modernisation of industrial sector stressed

Punjab Governor Lieutenant General Khalid Maqbool (retd) has stressed the need for adopting rational approach for modernisation of industrial sector for further accelerating the pace of trade and commerce activities in the country.
Addressing the members of Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) and other trade bodies at Sialkot International Airport here on Tuesday, he added that the government had announced very attractive and business-friendly budget, which would surly bring boom in the industrial sector.
Due to the effective economic policies of the government, Pakistan had become a very attractive hub for the foreign investment resultantly the reservoirs of foreign exchange had been considerably increased, he said.
Khalid Maqbool said the government had taken numerous revolutionary steps for the betterment of common man, and sufficient increase in salaries and pension had been ensured in the Federal budget, aimed at reducing the problems being faced by the common man in the country.
Various industries had been announced zero-rated by the government while several incentives had been announced for the textile industry, the Punjab Governor said. He said the government was mobilising all resources and channels for the industrialisation in the country, aimed at generating employment opportunities and to reduce the poverty line in the country.
The Governor said that special attention had also been accorded to the establishment of new universities, including Sialkot and other parts of the country, for providing quality education to the students in modern studies.
Earlier, Sialkot International Airport Chief Executive Khawar Anwar Khwaja briefed the Punjab Governor about the mega project of Sialkot International Airport. The Sialkot Airport project had a great significance because it was totally financed by the private sector and so far the private sector had not built a project of this magnitude and size in South Asia, he added.
Khawar Khwaja said this project would be completed at a cost of more than rupees two billion and it was being developed on Build, Own and Operate (BOO) basis. This modern and professionally designed airport was being developed over 1004 acres of land and would handle B747-400, A300 and 737 aircraft.
The airport would not only cater to the needs of golden industrial triangle of Sialkot, Gujranwala and Gujrat, but would also generate thousands of employment opportunities, besides bring a revolutionary change in the socio-economic development of the region, Khawar Khwaja said.
On this occasion, the Punjab Governor said that business community of Sialkot had set a unique precedent by undertaking mega project of Sialkot International Airport on self-help basis. The members of all trade bodies, including Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industries (SCCI), hailed the Federal budget, termed it business-friendly and congratulated Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz.
They assured the Punjab Governor that the business community would play its pivotal role in doubling the exports under the incentives and concessions announced in the budget. Provincial Industries Minister Muhammad Ajmal Cheema, Chairman of Task Force on Trade and Industry Mian Muhammad Riaz, Sialkot District Nazim Muhammad Akmal Cheema and government officers were also present on the occasion.