Business and industrial community has strongly criticised another Rs 2.04 increase in electricity tariff and urged the government to withdraw the same in the larger interest of trade and industry that is already facing multiple internal and external challenges.
Multan Chamber of Commerce & Industry (MCCI) President Shahid Naseem Khokhar on Friday said that electricity prices in Pakistan were already higher than the other countries of the region and the new hike would push the crisis-hit industrial sector to the wall.
He said that how Pakistani merchandise would be able to win buyers' loyalty in the international market when their prices were higher than the same quality goods of other countries. He said that according to the reports more than 40 percent electricity was being stolen but instead of controlling the theft and line losses, "the authorities are busy in making further increases in electricity prices while it is a proven fact that the raise in the tariff always leads to increase in the incidence of power theft."
He said they had already conveyed to the government that the country would become a "trading hub" if appropriate measures were not taken to ensure proper supply of cheap electricity to the industry but nobody bothered to even listen to the voice of trade and industry.
Shahid Naseem Khokhar said the flight of capital had intensified in the recent years only because of flawed government policies especially relating to energy and infrastructure. "If enough facilities had been given to these areas, there could have been no relocation of industrial units to Bangladesh and Malaysia." He said that energy was a main source of development and electricity prices were highly correlated to the economic growth and increase in electricity tariff would stifle the trade and industry.
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