Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry has demanded of the government to curtail the rate of local taxes, as the industry had been suffering due to high cost of doing business.
The demand was raised by the LCCI office-bearers, including its President Mian Shafqat Ali, Senior Vice President Abdul Basit and Vice President Aftab Ahmad Vohra, while talking to provincial secretary Industries Anwar Ahmed Khan, here on Tuesday.
The LCCI office bearers informed the secretary that Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Ellahi had already exempted the industry situated in the industrial estates from local taxes and the LCCI wants the facility to be extended to the industry including poultry farms, feed mills and hatcheries outside the industrial estates.
They further urged the secretary Industries to help regularise the industries established or under construction without an approved plan. They said that till the decision of Ministry of Industries in this regard, action against such industries should be stopped.
They also took up the issue of deteriorating law and order situation in the province, saying that it is shying away investment in the country. Unless there is security of a person and his property nobody would be willing to invest in Pakistan, they added.
According to them, an action plan to reduce the cost of doing business needs to be urgently implemented to make the economy globally competitive. The shortage as well as rising tariffs of utilities and the exorbitant price of land required for small and medium-size enterprises are holding up rapid industrial expansion. Delayed tax refunds too impact adversely on business finances.
They said that the government had been slow in implementing its proposals like setting up textile cities or industrial estates where all infrastructural facilities could be provided under one roof.
"The government has not so far come out with SME policy. As a consequence of which specific needs of small and medium enterprises have not been addressed. SMEs continue to suffer from their limited role in policy and tariff/tax regimes formulation, inefficient and costly energy, non-availability of skilled manpower, poor infrastructural facilities and lack of credit," they observed.
They further said that foreign goods imported illegally have flooded the markets and are having a toll on the domestic industries. The tariff reduction on major smuggling prone items has encouraged their legal import and increased collection of sales tax and income tax from these commodities. The present situation could be further improved through administrative and fiscal measures. While tariff on smuggling prone items needs to be further rationalised, customs authorities should tighten vigilance on borders and to make their intelligence network more effective and scientific.
The Secretary Industries assured the members of the LCCI that the government would make all out efforts to address the problems confronted to the business community.
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